


Enticing the Rose

by Donatellosgirl36



Series: Bound [16]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, F/M, Family, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-15
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-14 04:37:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 39,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5729773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Donatellosgirl36/pseuds/Donatellosgirl36
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mikey is having a mid-life crisis while his son, Kaz, has found a new hero to worship. Mira has a crush and Donnie’s not handling it too well. And Leo is learning the finer points of being a single parent.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Moving Forward

The turtle leaned back in the chair, propping his feet on the control panel. “Dude, this planet better not be like dullsville or we’re out of here. Right, Chase?”

A second turtle, sitting a little behind the first at a table, banged away at buttons on a video game console. “Absolutely. We’re supposed to be having fun, and I don’t see what a no-name rock in this part of the galaxy can possible produce as fun.”

In the command chair at the center of the control board, the third turtle laughed. “Hey, man, the way my gramps described this place it should be awesome. And the name of the planet is Earth.”

Chase snorted. “Feh, whatever, K-three. Your gramps thinks a trip to the bathroom is exciting.”

The first turtle dropped his booted feet to the floor. “That’s it. Let’s just blow this off and go astro-surfing near Rigel Three.”

“Come on, Zan, just give it a chance. If nothing else, I hear they have righteous food.” K-three responded. He watched the blue planet grow threw the viewport, while his two companions grumbled. For some reason he felt drawn to the place. Maybe it was all the stories he’d heard about the brave group of ninjas that lived here, who’d once saved their home world. And if it really was boring they could always head back to the more populated quadrants of space later.

*&*&*&*&*&*

When the alarm went off, they all responded but at a much slower pace than they once had. By the time they’d made it to the lab, Mira was already sitting at the computer. She was far more alert than her uncles and father. She turned to them. “It’s the interplanetary alarm.”

“You mean we have visitors?” Leo had Shinta propped on his shoulder, where the tot was fretting a bit from the loud noise that had awoken him. His father rubbed circles on his shell.

“Is it Marina?” Raph yawned.

Donnie stepped forward and hit a few keys and then stood back up. “No, it’s not a Mazar ship. I’m not sure I’ve seen anything like it before.”

“Oh, great. Why does this stuff always happen in the middle of the night? I wish aliens had the courtesy to wait until morning at least.” Mikey grumbled.

“It is morning. It’s seven.” Mira pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone that reminded the brothers of Donnie.

Her father smiled at her. “Have you tried to plot their trajectory?”

She nodded. “If they continue on their present course, they should land outside the city in about an hour and a half.”

Leo frowned. “I guess we’d better go greet them, guys.”

Raph groaned. “Can’t we let the humans deal with the aliens for a change? Let the army take care of ‘em.”

Donnie shook his head. “I doubt they’ll even know they’ve landed. They probably have some kind of cloaking shield to hide their approach. The only reason we can spot them is because of the parts I stripped from Marina’s old cruiser.”

Leo nodded. “Then it has to be us. Let’s get ready to go.”

“Can I come?” Mira asked.

Leo almost told her no, but the fact was that Mira had proved herself over and over in the past two years. She had become a valuable addition to the team.  These days one of them always remained behind while the others went on patrol. So, Mira had essentially taken the fourth spot. And having two geniuses at hand while dealing with the aliens was probably not a bad idea. “Okay.”

Donnie patted Mira’s shoulder. “Get the exact coordinates.”

Sarah, Kala and Cat were waiting in the hall as they came out. Mikey grumbled some more as he stepped into their bedroom. Kala frowned as she followed. “What’s going on?”

“Stupid aliens, I wish they’d call ahead or something….” Mikey flopped on the bed.

Kala chuckled as she sat near him. “Why don’t you get some more sleep? I’ll wake you up when it’s time to go.”

He gave a slight nod and closed his eyes as she ran her fingers gently down his arm. She sighed, before getting up to help Sarah in the kitchen. The Mazar was making up a few quick sandwiches for the guys to take with them. Kala frowned a little at her appearance. Her friend always looked tired these days.  With the sudden lack of Amaya and the introduction on an infant, who’d been sick in the beginning, it wasn’t really a surprise.

Sarah’d stepped up and became something of a surrogate mother to little Shinta. But it was hard carrying on the daily chores of cooking and cleaning for eleven when you had an infant attached to you half the time.

Shinta was shy and rather clingy. And although Kala tried to watch him as often as she could when Leo was busy, the little rascal would always end up right under Sarah’s legs. Leo had tried a playpen in the dojo at first, but it didn’t last more than ten minutes as Shinta had immediately started wailing. He didn’t like being left alone that was for sure. That probably had something to do with the fact that he’d slept in Leo’s bed nearly every night since his hatching.

Raph had suggested they dig out the old crib, but Leo had said it wasn’t necessary since there was plenty of room in his bed. He had accepted the safety bar Don had installed on the far side of the bed to prevent the infant from rolling off though.

Kala moved past Sarah to start breakfast for the rest of them. Kaz and Yoshi would be up any minute. As if on cue there was a bellow from down the hall. “Yoshi!”

Kala sighed. Kaz was entering his pre-teens, which meant he was growing more moody by the day. It also meant every little thing set him off. And just as she’d expected, he came running into the kitchen. “Mom, Yoshi broke the string on my guitar again.” He held up the musical instrument to emphasize his point.

Kala patted his shoulder. “It’s okay, Kazzey. He just likes playing with it.”

“But Mom…” Kaz whined.

Sarah put the last of the sandwiches in a bag and turned to the eleven year old. “How about we get you a new guitar and give Yoshi the old one? That way you can both have one.”

Kaz looked at the beat up old fender.  Slowly he nodded. “Well, okay.”

Kala frowned as her son left the room. “How are we going to get him a new one? After Cat had the shop closed for so long, business is just now picking back up.” After the break in, Raph had been so paranoid that he wouldn’t let Cat reopen. It took several months and several sutra charms to make him comfortable enough to let her go up there without him. And in the beginning he’d even hung around upstairs to make sure nothing happened to her.

Sarah sighed. “We’ll figure it out. We did just fine before the income from the garage. I’m sure we can find Kaz another guitar, even if it isn’t brand new. It’ll be new enough that he won’t know the difference.”

Donnie stepped into the doorway. “Sarah?”

She picked up the bag and stepped out into the living room with him. “Take these with you. You could eat them on the way back.”

He smiled softly, pressing a hand to her cheek. She closed her eyes leaning into the comforting touch. Donnie frowned a little. He wasn’t blind. He knew she was stressed, even if she never said so, even if there was never any sign of frustration in the bond. “I was thinking, once we’ve dealt with these visitors, maybe we should head up to the farmhouse for the weekend. Just the two of us.”

He felt the surge of love flow over him, just before she opened her eyes. Wrapping her arms around him and resting her cheek against his chest, she sighed. “That sounds wonderful. It has been a while since we really got some alone time.”

Wrapping his own arms tightly around her, he squeezed her. “Yeah, it has. Things have been a little crazy around here.”

She chuckled softly and muffled a small yawn. “That’s an understatement.”

As if to make her point, Shinta came running from Leo’s room to latch onto her leg. “Neenee!” Donnie couldn’t help but chuckle as he looked down at the small turtle. How “Aunty” had become “Neenee” he’d never know, but it had become Shinta’s nickname for his wife. Sarah just smiled, still holding tight to her husband as if the little turtle was some permanent fixture on her leg.

Down the hall Raph and Cat were having a rather intense discussion. Cat paced the bedroom. “You can’t be serious!”

“Look, it might not even be the whole day. It could just be a few hours.”

“I am not closing up shop, Raph. I’ve worked too hard to get the place going again after…after the remodel.” She was referring to the painting of the garage floor, which covered up the garish mark on the cement.

Raph frowned as he stood from his place on the bedside. He took her shoulders. “Darlin’, if anything ever happened to you. I’d be a hundred times worse than Leo was. With all of us going, there won’t be anyone here if there’s trouble.”

“But there hasn’t been and those charms Master Shinta sent seem to be working just fine. At least as far as we know.”

He cupped her face. “Cat, please….” He kissed her and her hands came up to grip the edge of his plastron. She trembled and he deepened the kiss. When he rose up just a little, she was panting. He gazed down into her emerald eyes.  “Just call and tell the guys that you’re sick or somethin’, and they’ll have to pick up their bikes tomorrow. You can do that, can’t you?”

Cat licked her lips, still clinging to him. She nodded mutely and he smirked. She groaned softly as he pulled away. Raph knew how to play her like a violin. Once he got her motor going, he could get her to do almost anything. “That’s so not fair.”

He gave a rumbling chuckle deep in his chest. “I’ll make it up to you tonight.”

She smiled. “Oh, I bet you will.”

Suddenly there was a large crash next door. Raph and Mikey burst into the hallway at the same time, nearly running into each other as they tried to see exactly what had happened. On the floor were Kaz and Yoshi in another fight. They had knocked over their bookshelf in the process and it lay in pieces on one side of the room. Raph groaned and Mikey dragged a hand down his face. This was getting old.

“I want my own room! I’m tired of you breaking all my stuff!” Kaz shouted.

“Your stuff! It’s mine!” Yoshi retorted.

 “Enough!” Raph snapped and both boys immediately stopped. “What is goin’ on here?” Both boys opened their mouths and he put up a hand. “Never mind, I don’t really want to know.”

“Kaz, this has got to stop.” Mikey was more than a little irritated at this point. This was third time this week they’d broke up a fight it was only Tuesday.

“But Dad, he-“

“I don’t care. Enough is enough. Ten laps.”

Kaz’s jaw dropped. “But-“

Mikey narrowed his eyes. “Twenty. Want to try for thirty?”

Kaz clamped his mouth shut. Beside him Yoshi snickered and Raph glared. “You too, Yoshi. Ten laps.” Yoshi ducked his head, he wasn’t about to get twenty like Kaz had just done. “And when you get back, I suggest you clean this room.”

“Yeah, it better be spotless when we get back.” Mikey added.

Kaz’s head came up. Worry clouded his blue eyes pushing out the bit of anger that had formed there. “Get back?”

Mikey sighed, his tone softening a bit. “We’ll be back in a few hours. Don’t worry. Now, move it - to the dojo.” He followed the two boys as they crossed the living room.

Cat touched Raph’s arm and he looked down at her. He hadn’t noticed she’d followed him out. “Kaz may be on to something. Maybe we should separate them. They are getting older.”

Raph sighed as he looked on the destruction the two boys had left in their wake. “Yeah, but it ain’t like we got a whole lot of room. Where’d we move one of ‘em to? We’re kinda already burstin’ at the seams here.”

“Well, there is one place.” She turned her head to the living room.

He followed her gaze and frowned. “I don’t know, Cat. I know it’s been a long time, but it still feels wrong to mess with his things.”

“I know it’s hard. I felt the same way when I put Danny’s things away. But I also know he’d understand. And he’d be glad to give his room to one of his grandsons.” She stroked his cheek. “Just think about it. Okay?”

He nodded. “Okay, I’ll talk to the guys about it.”

She rose up and kissed him softly. “I love you. Be careful out there.”

He hugged her tightly. “I love you, too. And you know I will.”

She stepped back with a smile that belied the worry that always seemed to be present in her green eyes these days. “Well, I guess I’m on babysitting duty, since I’m grounded.”

He chuckled softly as she walked away. Then he sighed. Their family just wasn’t the same since Amaya’s death. Though life went on and the pain lessened over time, the fear of the intruder still lurked around the back of the minds. They tried to push the fear away, but it remained. Even with all the upgrades Don had done to their security system.

He’d setup a separate security alarm system with another dozen cameras and sensors as a backup to the primary, so if the first was disrupted the second would still be running. He’d also setup a secondary control panel beside the elevator. You could now not only set the alarm remotely without the use of the computer, but you could also close and lock all the doors in the garage without setting a foot upstairs. Even the latch on the roof had been upgraded to a thumbprint lock. No one except one of the four brothers or Mira could come through that way. So, in reality they were safer than they had ever been before.

And yet, the fear remained.

As Raph stepped into the living and watched his family, he understood why. There was too much here to loose. Too much life not lived, too much love not shared, too much joy not felt. Raph watched Leo step from his room with his katana and kneel to give Shinta a little pat on the head and tell him to be good. Unfortunately his brother had learned the hard way that it could all be lost in just a few unguarded seconds. There was far too much here to lose

Cat and Yoshi emerged from the dojo and he ran up to give his father a hug before he left. Mira came running up the hall as Don stepped away from Sarah to push the button for the elevator. The teen gave her mother a quick goodbye before joining her father and Leo in the car. Raph patted Yoshi’s head as he too stepped inside.

Mikey came from the dojo with a very tired looking Kaz. He stopped in the door to the kitchen to give Kala a kiss and whisper his love in her pointed ear. Kaz wrapped his arms around his father’s waist and hugged him tightly.

That too had changed. There were more ‘I love you’ s and more tender touches. There was more savoring of the quiet sweet moments, more understanding that every heartbeat was precious.

As the five turtles left through the back door of the garage, Leo paused more out of habit than anything else, and checked to be sure the sutra maker was still on the doorframe. It wasn’t likely to go anywhere as Don had painted a lacquer over to seal it down. The strange symbols had hung over all their doors now for nearly two years. Master Shinta had said they would prevent any demons from getting inside.

The old priest had been devastated when Leo had finally got a hold of him and told him what had happened. But he had quickly promised to do everything he could to help. And within a week a box had shown up with the sutra charms and instructions on how to use them. So, as he’d done each time he left since then, Leo prayed they would keep his family safe while they were gone.

Donnie drove while Mira sat at the computer console in the back, giving directions. The other three brothers sat quietly during the ride. They each secretly hoped these aliens were not out for a fight.


	2. The Meeting

The sleek ship settled into a clearing within some trees. The cloaking device had worked perfectly, not alerting the locals to their descent. Even if they weren’t worried about themselves being spotted, they didn’t want people snooping around their ship. “Why are we landing all the way out here, K-three? I thought all the action was in the city.” Chase folded his arms.

The ship’s ramp lowered and the three turtles strolled out. The black ship would easily be hidden from view here deep in the forest. “Because, I thought we could do some awesome biking along the mountains first. Check it out.” He pointed at a small mountain range a few miles away.

“Sounds good to me, I’ve been dying to try out these new vertical climbers we installed.” Zan pressed a button on the side of the ship and a compartment lowered. Three modified dirt bikes appeared.

Chase hopped on his. He grinned. “Last one to the top buys lunch!” The green and red bike did a wheelie as it shot off the platform.

“Hey, wait for us!” Zan climbed on his own bike, which was orange and white.

Beside him K-three sat on his own bike, which was violet and silver. It was slightly larger than his friends’ to accommodate his larger girth. He grinned. “You know what this means, right?”

Zan revved his engine. “Yeah, you’re about to buy lunch!” His bike flew off the platform.

The third turtle just shook his head, before giving chase. The three bikes sped through the large forest and up the mountainside. When there was no more even ground they implemented their newest modification. The vertical climbers were spikes that shot out through the tires and gripped the mountainside. The three cheered as they went straight up a vertical rock face.

“These are so righteous, bros! We should have put them on a long time ago!” Chase called over his shoulder.

Zan darted in front of him. “Better pay attention or you’ll be broke by this afternoon.”

Chase sped up to get closer. “Why is that?”

“Because I’m so ready for a super big nosh, man!”

Chase glanced over his shoulder. “Hey, where’s K-three?”

“Don’t know, but I guess he’s buying lunch.” Zan pressed the accelerator just a little harder and the bike jumped up and over the edge of the mountaintop. He gasped as he came to a stop.

“What took you guys so long?” K-three was leaning across his handlebars gazing out across the sea of trees. The landscape here was vastly different from the arid one of his home world.

Zan stared. “How did you…? Where did you…?”

K-three sat back with a grin. “Rocket booster, bro. Don’t leave home without them.”

Chase’s jaw dropped. “That’s cheating!”

K-three continued to grin. “I didn’t hear any rules. And it isn’t cheating unless there’re rules.”

Chase opened and closed his mouth several times and then looked at Zan for help. The turtle shrugged. “He’s got a point, bud. You didn’t make any rules.”

Chase seemed to finally get his voice back. “Worst out of three?” His buddies grinned. They had kind of expected that.

K-three turned his bike. “Sure. I’ll even give you a head start.”

“I don’t need it, bro!” Chase took off again. K-three just chuckled as he and Zan followed.

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

“Dudette, are you sure this is the right place?” Mikey stepped out of the van and looked around. All he could see were trees.

Raph stepped down beside him. “Yeah, this place looks pretty deserted.”

Mira stepped out behind them. “Yes, I’m sure. This should be it.” But the clearing they’d stopped in showed no sign of any alien craft.

Leo climbed down and put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m sure we’re close, even if we didn’t get it exactly right. We’ll just look around.”

Mira frowned. That was her uncle’s way of patronizing her. She folded her arms with a little pout. “I know how to calculate a trajectory.”

Behind her, Donnie moved into the computer console’s chair. After a moment of reviewing Mira’s work, he flipped on a scanner. “Mira’s calculations aren’t wrong guys. I just think we can’t see it.” He studied the monitor for another moment before getting up and stepping outside with the rest of them. He turned to walk towards the tree line. Curious the others followed.

No more than fifty feet in and they stopped to stare at the glossy black ship. “Well, would you look at that?” Raph admired the ship with its aerodynamic design. It was obviously used for both interplanetary travel as well as local planetary travel.

“Yeah, looks like some kind of hot-rod space ship.” Mikey grinned. “I wonder if they race it.”

Donnie refrained from explaining that there was no friction in space therefore the ‘hot-rod’ design did little to help in any speed competition within the vacuum of space. Instead he examined the scanner he was holding. “Hmm, I’m not detecting any life signs inside.”

Leo frowned. “Which means our visitors are already roaming around somewhere.”

“Yeah, they’re probably already scaring the pants off some humans.” Raph couldn’t help but grin at the idea of some poor slob camping nearby and being invaded by some alien squids or something.

Leo rubbed his chin. “Don, can you use your scanner to look for non-human life signs?”

Don looked at the device in his hand. “Not with this one. But I could with the one in the van.”

They turned and headed back the way they had come. Don and Mira stepped back inside and he began recalibrating the sensors. Outside, Mikey stretched and yawned. “Hey, do you think it could be that Polarisoid, Frip?”

Leo shivered, remembering their unfortunate encounters with the alien. “Gosh, I hope not.”

Raph snorted. “I don’t think Frip would be drivin’ around a fancy ship like that.”

Inside, Don had finished adjusting the sensors. He and Mira stared at the screen for a minute. “Guys, we’re about to have company.”

Leo had already spotted the small dust storm that seemed to be moving in their direction. “We see them, Donnie.”

Three bikes pulled to a stop in front of them. The three riders watched them through the tinted glass of their helmets. The one in front was the largest, his violet and silver bike hummed. The rider to his left, who was straddling a somewhat smaller bike with orange and white, smacked the first one on the shoulder. “I thought you said that there were humans on this planet.”

The first one jerked his head around. And even without being able to see past the visor, you could tell he was glaring. “Humans do live here.”

The third rider, who’d been silent till that point, started to pull off his helmet. “Yeah, but those aren’t humans. They look like turtles.” The other two followed suit, revealing themselves to the group before them.

The brothers gasped. There before them sat three turtles on supped up bikes, looking as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Don stepped out of the back of the van, but Mira paused to take in the sight. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined this possible. The turtle in front met her eyes and she felt her heart pound. Their soft golden hue drew her into their depths. Donnie glanced up at her when she let a small gasp escape her.

Leo stepped forward. “So, who are you? And what are you doing here?”

K-three dismounted and took a few steps forward. “You must be Leonardo. I’ve heard a lot about you. All of you.” He put out his hand with a smile.

Slowly Leo took it, still a bit wary of the visitors. “You know who we are?”

K-three grinned broadly. “Yep, my gramps told me all about you guys.”

Mikey frowned. “Your gramps?” Behind him, Mira slipped from the back of the van to peek around his shoulder.

“Yeah, he said you guys were cool. I kind of figured we’d run into each other.”

“K-three, don’t tell me you drug us to this rock to hang out with these old dudes?” Zan groaned. “If we wanted to do that we could have just went home for our vacation.”

“Old dudes!” Mikey sputtered. He couldn’t believe these punks had just called them old.

Donnie moved forward eyeing them. “And exactly where is home?”

Chase draped himself across his handlebars. “Shellri-La, where else?”

Raph stood up a little straighter. “You mean, your Turtleoids?”

Zan gave him a funny look. “Yeah, what else would we be?”

Leo gave a nervous chuckle. “Mutant turtles.” Zan and Chase exchanged a look. They had no clue what he was talking about.

Donnie frowned. “Wait, how could you be Turtleoids? They’re only about three feet tall. There’s no way your evolution could have produced you overnight, sort of speak. That would be impossible, unless…”

 “Unless we were genetically altered.” K-three smiled and flexed a well-toned arm, his black leather vest falling over his powerful shoulder. “Yep, we’re bigger, stronger, more agile, and even more intelligent than our predecessors.”

Mikey had put the pieces together. “So, if you’re from Shellri-La and your grandfather knows us. Does that mean your grandfather is Kerma?”

K-three gave a nod and the guys gave another gasp. Raph smiled a little at the memory of the tiny Turtleoid and his ‘small problems’. “So, how is our little pal? Doin’ okay, I hope.”

K-three nodded but his eyes held a tinge of sadness. “Gramps is pushing a hundred, but he’s still hanging around.”

Leo frowned. “Wow, has it really been that long?”

Don put a hand on his shoulder. “It has been thirty years since we saw him last.”

Mikey groaned. “Bros, you’re making us sound seriously old too.”

Zan snickered. “Pops, you’re old enough to be my old man so that makes you old.”

Mikey glared. “That is mega rude, dude.”

Mira put a hand on his arm as she stepped around him. “You’re not old Uncle Mikey.”

He smiled down at her. “Thanks, dudette.”

Zan’s head came up as she came into full view. He leaned towards Chase. “Check it out, man.”

Chase grinned. “Yeah, I might enjoy this trip after all.”

In front of them, K-three glanced over his shoulder. He hadn’t heard exactly what was said but he could easily deduce what was going through his buddies’ minds. He turned his attention back to Leo. “Yeah, gramps told me all about you four.” He pointed to each. “Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo.” The brothers nodded in turn and he took a step in Mira’s direction. “But he didn’t say anything about you. So, what’s your name little flower.”

“Well, uh.” Mira blushed and took a step back. Mikey lifted an eye ridge. He’d never seen Mira blush before and it was completely adorable on her. The pink staining her cheeks was nearly the same shade as her silk mask. Her deep brown eyes held the golden ones for a lingering moment, before a mass stepped between them.

Donnie glared at the younger turtle, suppressing the desire to growl out right. “Her name is Mira and she is _my_ daughter.”

The ninja and Turtleoid stood at nearly the same height and for the span of two heartbeats they held each other’s gaze.  Smartly K-three took a step back, looking away. “I see.”

“Dad!” Mira squawked, stepping around to scowl at her father. She could feel his sudden possessive protectiveness swell inside her. He flinched at her tone and gaped at as she walked around him to stand in front of K-three. “So, uh, what are you guys doing here? I’m sure there has got to be more interesting places than Earth out there.”

Chase and Zan had finally dismounted and moved to stand beside their friend. Zan smiled, tucking his hands into his sleeveless orange hoody. “We’re on break from school. Thought we’d scope out the scene and see if there was any fun to be had on this rock.”

Chase grinned. “Yeah and so far we’re liking what we see.”

Mira blushed again but held her ground this time. Involuntarily Raph took a few steps forward. He wasn’t so sure he liked the way these guys were eyeing his niece. Donnie started to take a step forward too but Mikey put a hand on his shoulder. “Chill, bro. They are just talking.”

Leo frowned, observing the visitors closely. “Well, walking talking turtles are not exactly the norm on this planet, so if you go walking around out in public like that you’ll start a panic.”

Chase frowned. “You live here, don’t you?”

“We don’t exactly mix with the humans though.” Mira explained.

K-three grinned. “No problem. I’ve got just the thing.” They followed them back to their ship. While Chase and Zan loaded the dirt bikes back up, K-three disappeared inside for a moment to return with four metallic wrist bands. “I picked these up at a market on Devin Five.” He fiddled with the controls for a moment. “Here we go, humanoid.” He slapped the wrist band on and before their very eyes he changed into a human male. His human form was tall with long blonde hair and tan skin.

“Sweet, a holo-projector!” Chase snatched one and put it on. His holo image was that of a man with dark brown skin and jet black hair. “Bro, you’ve been holding out on us. I could have used one of these on Santarrees.”

“Awesome.” Zan grabbed one as well. When he first hit the button it turned him into a giant slug.

K-three dragged a hand down his face. “You got to change it to humanoid, Zan.”

“Uh, yeah, I knew that.” There was a flicker and Zan appeared as young man with short brown hair. “I was just testing it out.”

K-three just shook his head. Then he smiled down at Mira. “I’ve got one more. Want to show us around?”

Before she could answer, Leo stepped forward taking the offered bracelet. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”

“Hey, they’re cool.  The batteries last about six hours before they need to be recharged and these babies are completely waterproof, which means we can even surf in them.” K-three explained.

Mikey lit up. “You dudes surf?”

The three Turtleoids exchanged looks. “Doesn’t everybody?” They asked in unison.

Mikey chuckled. “Hey, I think I might like you guys after all.”

K-three smiled, his gaze falling to Mira again. “So, what do you say little flower? Want to give us a tour? This is your planet after all.”

Mira opened her mouth but Leo spoke first. “I’m still not so sure if that’s a good idea. It could still be dangerous for her out there, unprotected.”

Mira frowned. “But Uncle Leo…” When would she get another opportunity like this, to walk among humans in broad daylight without people running in fear?

Leo turned away from her. “It’s something I’ll have to think about.”

Donnie folded his arms with a scowl. “Well, it’s not something I have to think about. No way.”

Mira spun on him. “But Dad, that is totally unfair!”

Don shook his head. “There is no way on Earth that I’m going to let you run off with these three. We don’t even know them.”

K-three pressed the button to turn off his holo-projector; the other two did the same. “But you do know my grandfather.”

Mira blinked big brown eyes at her father, which usually worked on him. “Please, Dad. They are turtles after all.”

“We’d watch out for her.” Chase offered.

Donnie glared at him and then turned his gaze back to Mira. “No.”

Mira felt the finality of the word and the determination behind it as he turned and climbed into the van. Her shoulders sagged in defeat. She didn’t understand why he was being so difficult all of a sudden. Raph put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, kiddo. Give him some time, maybe he’ll come around.”

“Well, while you guys think it over, I’m getting seriously hungry. Where can a guy grab some grub around here?” Zan rubbed his stomach.

Mikey smiled. “Hey, why don’t you guys come back to the lair with us? I could make you one of my famous pizzas.” He turned to his brother. “What do you say, Leo?”

The elder brother glanced at the van where he knew Donnie was seething. Mira glanced over one shoulder at him with a tentative hope. Leo looked from his remaining brothers to the visitors. He sighed. It was better to keep these three out of sight and thus out of possible troublemaking as much as possible. “Alright.”

“That sounds good to us.” Chase folded his arms over the gray t-shirt.

Zan chuckled. “Yeah, I guess that means you’re off the hook for buying lunch.”


	3. Insight

Shinta watched Sarah pace nervously back and forth in front of the elevator from his place on the floor. She fretted with her long hair. Donnie was mad and irritated, and that made her worry. It was very rare for her to feel so much anger from him. They were headed home. She could feel him getting closer by the minute. Sarah bit her bottom lip as she tried to figure out what was going on. Mira didn’t seem upset. She was a little anxious but otherwise happy.

Kala looked up from reviewing Kaz’s math work for the day. “Is someone hurt?”

Sarah shook her head. “No, that’s not it. If someone was hurt, he’d be worried not mad.”

“Maybe, Mikey blew up the transmission again.” Cat suggested from where she was sprawled on one of the couches. On the floor beside her, Yoshi leaned against the couch playing a video game.

Sarah shook her head again with a little more vigor. “No, I know that kind of irritation. It’s not annoyance, it’s something else. Besides if the van was broke, how could they be on their way home?”

The panel beside the elevator flashed from red to green, meaning it had been disarmed. At the sound of the elevator car moving, Cat sat up. “Well, it looks like we’re about to find out.”

Shinta scurried over to hide behind Sarah’s leg as the door opened. Donnie was the first to exit. He met her eyes for a split-second and then stomped off to his lab. She frowned after him. “Donnie?”

“Daddy!” Shinta grinned as Leo came out. The tot hurried forward and his father scooped him into his arms. Leo smiled warmly at his son. Maybe Amaya wasn’t here to greet him anymore, but Shinta was. And every day he saw those blue-gray eyes shining up at him, his heart hurt a little less.

“Leo, what’s going on?” Sarah watched as the others filed out and then she blinked in surprise. “Who are you?”

Cat had come around the couch to greet Raph. She turned in his embrace to stare at the newcomers. “Whoa…”

“It’s okay.” Mikey stopped beside Kala squeezing her hand. “They’re friends.”

Mira came to stand beside her mother. “This is Zan, Chase and K-three.” Her eyes lingered on the third turtle just a little longer than the others. “They’re from Shellri-La. Guys this is my mom, Sarah.”

Zan grinned. “You made those breakfast things we just ate? They were totally awesome.” He licked his lips. “I wish there’d been about twenty more.”

K-three watched the small woman intently and finally a slow uncertain smile crossed her lips. “Well, lunch should be ready in a few minutes. Make yourselves at home while you wait.” She took Mira’s wrist. “Mira, I need to speak with you for a minute.” She pulled the teen down the hall to her room. “What’s going on? Why is your father so upset?”

Mira shrugged. “I really don’t know. I’ve been trying to figure that out the whole way home. But I just don’t get it. All they did was ask if I wanted to show them around.”

Sarah frowned deeply. The information only made her more confused. She gave her daughter a little hug. She could feel Mira’s confusion as well. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll go find out what’s wrong.” She smiled at the teen that had grown just a little taller than her. “Why don’t you see if our new friends want something to drink?”

Mira smiled. “Alright.”

Sarah followed her from the room, and watched her speaking to their guests in the living room. Then she turned, entering the lab. Donnie was sitting with his back to the door. She closed it softly behind her. He didn’t move as she approached. She stepped around his chair to watch him stare blankly at the computer screen. He wasn’t working. He knew it and so did she.

She reached out and turned his face to hers. “Tell me.”

For a moment the hardness in his eyes remained and then it slipped away. “I can’t stand it.”

She sat on the edge of his desk. “Can’t stand what?”

“The way he looks at her.”

Sarah’s frown returned. It was unlike Donnie to talk in such disjointed sentences. “Who looked at her?”

“K-three.”

“How did he look her?”

He paused considering how to put what he was feeling into words. “He looked at her, the way I look at you.”

Sarah pressed her lips together thoughtfully. That could mean a thousand different things, but she knew he only meant one. “So, he’s attracted to her.”

He shook his head. “No, it’s more than that.”

She processed that for a moment. So, Donnie thought K-three had fallen for Mira. That could be a good thing, a bad thing, or even a just okay thing. “Only time will prove your theory and I doubt they will be here that long.”

Donnie frowned. “They said they were going to stay for ten days. They’re on some type of break from school.”

She took his hands and squeezed them. “Did he do anything I should be concerned about?”

He looked down at their joined hands. “Well, no, not really.” Sarah smiled and he looked up at her as he felt amusement ripple through the bond. “What?”

She leaned forward and pecked his lips. “Then, my love, you are simply being an overprotective father.”

He blinked at her and then smiled just a little. “Not a very becoming characteristic, is it?”

She chuckled as she slid off the desk into his lap. “I don’t know. I find it rather endearing.”

Kaz pulled the earbuds from his ears to listen to the voices in the other room. There sure did sound like there were a lot more people than normal in their home. Curiosity getting the better of him, he stood and headed into the hall. He paused at the end to blink at the crowded living room.

“Hey, Kaz, come meet our new buds.” Mikey motioned for him to join them. Kaz eyed the large turtle wearing a leather vest leaning against the wall between the elevator and kitchen. K-three gave him a small nod of acknowledgement. The young turtle moved past him to the couch where his father was sitting. “This is Chase and Zan. And that over there is K-three.” Mikey jabbed a thumb at the lone turtle near the elevator. “They’re from Shellri-La. This is our son, Kaz.” He said to their visitors.

Kaz paused for a moment, trying to remember what Shellri-La was. Then his eyes went wide. “You’re the aliens?”

Chase chuckled. “Yeah, I guess we are.”

Zan glanced at the three smaller turtles. Yoshi was sitting beside Cat, eyeing the newcomers suspiciously, Shinta seemed oblivious to their presence as he sat in Leo’s lap, and Kaz was staring at the with curious eyes. He shook his head in slight disbelief. “Boy, it really does feel like we’re back home.”

“What are those?” Kaz pointed at the three boards lying on the floor.

“Hover-boards. We figured since we were city side, might as well take in some ground terrain.” Chase explained.

Kaz blinked. “Like skateboarding?”

Zan lifted an eye ridge. “Skateboarding?”

“Yeah, you know skateboarding.” Kaz watched them draw blank faces. “I’ll get mine.” The turtle disappeared down the hall and returned with his board.

Chase leaned forward.  “Kind of primitive, but it looks like the same concept.”

Zan grinned. “So, do you know how to use that thing little dude?”

Kaz returned the grin. “You bet I can.”

Zan’s grin widened. “Cool, then you’ll have to show us the best places to shred.”

While the others continued to chat, K-three turned his attention to the kitchen where Mira had gone to fetch some drinks. He gave the group another glance before turning and entering the room with her. He watched her pull some sodas from the fridge. Her arms, though lean, were well –toned and her movements were fluid and elegant. Her neck was slender and soft.

He felt his heart race. She was beautiful and mesmerizing. He took a step forward, his boots clicking a little on the floor. She looked up at him and he fought to speak around the clump in his throat. “Would you like some help?”

She blushed and he felt his skin grow warm. Her voice was soft and a bit uncertain when she spoke. “Uh, no. Not really. Thank you, though.” She lifted the tray she’d filled with drinks.

“Let me help.” He stepped forward to take the heavy tray and his fingers brushed hers. Mira’s eyes widened. The touch had shot electricity through her body. She blinked up at him and she could sense his emotions rolling through her like a tsunami. They wrapped around her, clawed at her, and swallowed her in a way she’d never felt before.

K-three stared down into the big brown eyes that were such an amazing shade of deep brown that he nearly drowned in them. They were so intelligent and so innocent at the same time. Something about her drew him to her like some crazed moth to a flame, longing to touch the fire and yet afraid.

“Everything okay, Mira?” Raph’s voice came from the doorway drawing the two suddenly from the moment.

Mira brushed her mask tails over her shoulder. She cleared her throat. “Yeah, I was just coming.” She tugged the tray gently from K-three’s hands and hurried out the door past her uncle.

The ninja eyed the younger turtle for a moment. “I suggest you watch yourself. Mira has a lot more insight into people than you’d guess.”

K-three turned to him. “What do you mean?”

Raph folded his arms. “I mean, she can smell bad intentions from a mile away. So, don’t try anything funny.” He turned to leave, but stopped to glance over his shoulder at the young man. “And if you hurt her, I _will_ hurt you.”

K-three watched him leave the room. He was obviously going to have to be very careful here. It was plain that her family was not very trusting of strangers, even if they were turtles. He stepped to the doorway to watch her move about the room, handing out the drinks. When she came to hand him his, she didn’t meet his eyes as she offered it over. He wrapped his hand deliberately around hers and received the same satisfying tingle he had minutes ago. Her head came up meeting his eyes and that same pink tinted her cheeks. He smiled and she returned it, before slipping her hand from his.

He felt irrationally cold as she stepped away from him to stand only a few feet away beside Leo. But when she peeked up at him his chest warmed again. He leaned against the wall and sipped the strange fuzzy drink, wondering exactly how this girl was entrancing him so. He wasn’t the type to fall for anything with two legs and shell. That was more Chase’s style. And although they didn’t see many females at the academy he had been around his fair share. There was simply something different about her, he just couldn’t put his finger on it.

The lab door opened and K-three watched the couple step into the living room. Sarah squeezed Donnie’s hand before stepping around the Turtleoid into the kitchen. K-three met Don’s eyes but only for an instant.

“K-three, check it out!” Chase came off the couch.

Yoshi had flipped on the television after becoming a bit tired of the adult discussion going on around him. On the screen was a ship very similar in make to the one their new friends had arrived in, except this one was red. The ramp lowered and out stepped two more Turtleoids. K-three moved around the couch to stare at the screen. He scowled. “Damn, what are they doing here?”

Chase and Zan stood beside him. Chase tapped a finger on his chin. “Eznic must have followed us.”

Zan frowned. “He wasn’t very happy with you after our last battle sim, Cap. He must be itching for a rematch.”

Chase cracked his knuckles. “I’ll give him a rematch all right. One word Cap and I’ll go teach ’em some manners.”

K-three folded his arms. “No, Commander, let them be for now.”

“But what if Eznic and Prog start making trouble?” Zan’s brow knotted. “We should send them packing now.”

K-three continued to watch the screen. “I said no, Lieutenant. We’d have to expose ourselves and I didn’t come here to knock around those two meatheads. We came here to relax.”

Leo was standing beside them now. “Friends of yours, I’m guessing?”

K-three narrowed his eyes on the screen. “Rivals more like it. But yeah, we know them.”

Mikey frowned as he turned to his brother. “Hey, Don, why didn’t your alarm go off before they landed?”

Donnie frowned as well. “I had to shut it off.” He glared at the three visitors. “Their ship kept setting it off.”

Raph watched the two turtles on the screen. “Are these guys gonna be trouble?”

Zan turned to face him. “For sure. Eznic has had it out for K-three ever since he made captain.”

“We don’t know that for certain, Zan.” K-three turned his back on the television. “And until we do, hands off. Do I make myself clear? I’ve already dug your shell out of enough craters. I’m not dealing with central because you two go off all halfcocked again.” He shot a glare at Chase.

The turtle put up his hands. “Hey, bro, fine by me. I’m not in the mood to deal with that creep anyways.”

“Friends or not, those two are not going to go around our city making trouble.” Leo pointed out, meeting K-three’s gaze.

K-three nodded. “If they do, we’ll take care of them.”

Raph stood. “You better or we will.”

Sarah stepped into the doorway. “Lunch is ready.”

Zan grinned. “Yeah, now that’s what I’m talking about, more munchies.”

They all began to file into the kitchen. Mira hung back a little, she eyed K-three. “Captain? Does that mean you’re military?”

He slowed his long stride, so she could walk beside him. “Sort of. All Turtleoid males are sent to the academy. We are trained for combat and we can choose to join the fleet when we graduate. And if we do, we get to keep our ranks.” He sat between Sarah and Chase.

Mira took the only other empty chair which was on the other side of her father, who was still frowning. “The Turtleoids have a fleet?” Donnie couldn’t recall seeing more than a handful of ships when they last visited Shellri-La. And those vessels didn’t even have weapons.

“Yeah, how else were we going to defend ourselves against the invasion?” Zan was already filling his plate.

“Invasion?” Cat asked. The guys had never mentioned anything about Shellri-La being invaded.

Chase looked up from his own plate. “If that stinking warlord thinks we’ll go down easy, he’s got another thing coming.”

The murmur around the table died. Sarah stared at him with her big brown eyes. “Warlord?” Donnie squeezed her hand. He could feel her trepidation growing and it matched his own.

K-three growled his eyes fixed on the empty plate before him, but not actually seeing it. All he could see was the face of his enemy. “That Mazar filth killed my brother in that first raid. And if it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to make him pay.”

The silence that followed was deafening.


	4. Plans

Mikey was the one that broke the oppressive quiet that filled the room. “You don’t mean Lord Zenfered, do you?”

The three Turtleoids paused now. Chase eyed him. “You know him?”

Leo cleared his throat. “We’ve had some run-ins with his, uh, people from time to time.”

Zan frowned. “I take it they weren’t pleasant encounters, then?”

Leo wasn’t certain how to respond to that, and Chase took his silence as conformation. The turtle growled pounding a fist against the table top. “As far as I’m concerned, after what they did to our home world that whole race needs to be exterminated!”

Donnie was on his feet so fast that his and Sarah’s chairs clattered to the floor. He pressed her tight against his side, a fierce growl leaving him. It took a mere millisecond for understanding to dawn in K-three’s eyes and he was on his feet. The rest of the table followed. For several long heartbeats no one moved or breathed. Then like a volcano had erupted there was shouting.

“She’s one of them!” Chase snarled.

“You mated a Mazar!” Zan shouted in disgust.

“Sarah was raised human!” Leo protested.

“Don’t even think about touching her!” Raph growled.

“She’s never even met her father!” Mikey objected.

K-three glared at him. “Her father?” He turned the look on Sarah. “Your father is Zenfered!”

Sarah cringed and not just because of the turtle’s accusing tone, but because Donnie’s arm tightened almost painfully around her. “He tried to kill her!” He snarled.

“Wait!” Mira was suddenly between K-three and her father. “Just wait!” K-three glared at her but did as she asked. “My mom has never even met Zenfered. She’s lived here her entire life. She has nothing to do with him or his wars. We didn’t even know there was an invasion until you said so.”

“Yeah, we’re not exactly fans of his. He’s tried to kill Sarah twice. And one of his men did kill Amaya.” Raph glanced at Leo and saw the flicker of pain in his eyes.

K-three’s angry expression dropped, changing to one of contemplation. Beside him Chase growled again. “You’re not actually listening to this, are you? That Mazar scum destroyed half of the capitol city!”

“Hey, we saved your planet once.” Mikey jabbed a finger at them. “Why would we want it destroyed now?”

“As a matter of fact, we’d be willing to help if you need it.” Leo offered.

Don flinched and shot his brother a dubious look, but he didn’t trust himself to speak yet. Sarah was stroking the arm he still had clamped around her, trying her best to calm him by sending him waves of reassuring love. Leo’s offer did seem to calm their guests though. The three slowly relaxed their stances and took their seats. The brothers did the same. All except Donnie, he shifted Sarah to his other side at the table, so she sat between him and Mira. He eyed K-three as he sat beside him.

The Turtleoid sighed. “Sorry, it was just a bit of a shock. We haven’t met any peaceful Mazar before.”

Mira frowned. “My aunt and her mate are peaceful. They’re just scientist.”

Chase scowled. “Yeah, well that’s probably why we haven’t run into them before. The only ones that attempt to land on Shellri-La are packing laser rifles. They aren’t so peaceful.”

Mira frowned and looked away. Beside her, Sarah slipped her hand into hers. K-three frowned as well. “That’s enough, Chase. They haven’t done anything wrong.”

Chase looked like he might protest until K-three shot him a glare. “Feh, fine.”

Kala cleared her throat and attempted to break the tension. “So, how long are you staying?”

Zan stuffed a roll into his mouth and mumbled around it. “Ten days.”

“That’s right. You said that you had some kind of break from school.” Mikey prompted, still trying to steer the conversation away from the volatile subject.

K-three began to slowly fill his empty plate. “It’s our last one before finales. It’s supposed to be a time to finish up work and reflect on the last two years. Or in our case, to blow off some steam. The final quarter is always the hardest.”

Chase snorted. “What are you worried about? You probably already have your dissertation written.”

Zan gave a humorless laugh. “He doesn’t need to write one. Way I hear it they’re going to offer him a command right out of the gate.”

K-three turned towards them, propping his elbow on the back of his chair. “You know, it wouldn’t hurt you two to actually make an effort to use your brains sometimes. And as for the command, I have no intention of taking one.”

Zan looked up. This was the first he’d heard of this plan. “Why not? You made the cut. Everyone knows it.”

“I’m not interested in being central’s little puppet. And you shouldn’t either.”

Chase glowered. “Well, we can’t all be brains and brawn. You’d think a genius like you’d figure that out by now.” He pushed back from the table. “Excuse me, I just lost my appetite.”

“Aw, come on, Chase.” K-three called after him as the turtle left the room. He shot his remaining buddy an annoyed look. “Gee, thanks Zan. You think you could have rubbed it in his face a little more?”

Zan just shrugged. “Hey, you know how Chase is. Let him blow off some steam, he’ll be back in a little while. Besides, it isn’t your fault he never picked a major outside of combat training.”

K-three groaned. “Man, sometimes I just don’t get you. You know why he didn’t as much as I do.”

“Why?” Mira asked softly.

He turned back to the table, his eyes meeting hers. “He can’t read very well. It’s not that he doesn’t understand individual words, but when they are bunched together in sentences and paragraphs, he gets confused.”

She frowned. “Like dyslexia?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know what you’d call it here, but there’s some kind of disconnect between here,” he gestured to his eyes, “and here,” he gestured to his brain. “I figured it out back when we were still kids.”

Zan lowered his fork, guilt tugging at him. “K-three’s the only reason Chase made it through basic school. And there’s no way he could have made commander under anyone else.”

Raph frowned. “That had to ’ve been hard on him.”

K-three shook his head sadly. “He’s got a mind like a steel trap and he learns fast, but only if it’s spoken to him. I’ve done everything that I can to keep him in my unit. It saves him the trouble of having to explain it to another c.o. and I know I have someone watching my back that I can trust.”

Zan suddenly paused in scrapping Chase’s plate onto his, which was now empty. “So, that’s why you don’t want a starship.”

K-three lowered his eyes. “I can’t exactly leave you two knuckleheads alone. You’d be killed in the first week out of the academy.”

Zan frowned. “Bro, I don’t know what to say. Yeah, I do. That’s stupid! You’d give up a starship command and become infantry for us! That’s crazy!”

K-three let out a heavy sigh. “You two are all I have left, Zan. I won’t let him take that away from me too.” He stood, not meeting anyone’s gaze. “Please, excuse me.”

Zan groaned and dropped his head into his hands as his friend left. “Some vacation.”

Mikey frowned. “Dude, are you sure you’re friends, ‘cause you just sent both of them scurrying out of here like injured deer?”

Zan groaned again. “I didn’t do anything.”

Raph snorted. “Sounds like you got the same problem Mikey does.” Zan blinked at him blankly. “You don’t know when to keep your trap shut.” This earned him a glare from both Mikey and Zan.

The young Turtleoid sighed. “Yeah, well I just told the truth. It’s stupid and he knows it. I just wish they’d both chill so we could go have some fun.”

“What sort of fun?” Cat asked.

“You know dirt biking, base jumping, surfing, hover-boarding, reef diving. Whatever’ll take the edge off.”

“So, anything that’ll give you an adrenaline rush.” Cat concluded.

He nodded and glanced at Mira. “It still would be nice to have a tour guide through.”

Donnie glared. “No.”

“Hey, we’ve got an extra holo-projector. No one would know who she was or even what she was for that matter.” Zan pointed out.

Leo took out the metal band from his belt and examined it. “Maybe it would be okay, if one of us went along too. Do you have any more of these?”

Zan shook his head. “They’re K-three’s you’d have to ask him, but I don’t think so.”

“Let me see that, Leo.” Don put out his hand and his brother handed it over. He examined it. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to replicate this technology, but I could try.”

Zan grinned. “Hey, that would be awesome! Wouldn’t it, dudette?”

Mira wasn’t paying much attention to Zan, she was more focused on the door which K-three had just left through. “Oh, uh, yeah. It would be.” She picked up her empty plate. “There’s something I need to do.” She set her plate in the sink and started to leave.

Donnie opened his mouth to protest. He knew where she was going. But Sarah put a hand on his arm and leaned close. “She’s just in the next room.” He frowned, but decided to let it be for the moment.

Mira stepped from the kitchen to find K-three sitting on the couch. He was staring at something in his hand. She glanced over his shoulder as she walked around to sit nearby. “Who’s that?”

He looked up at her as she sat down. “My little brother, Trin.” He turned the photo so she could see it better. It was of a slightly younger K-three and an even younger Turtleoid of about fourteen.

She frowned, feeling the incredible sadness that accompanied the name. “You said he was killed?”

He nodded. “He and my parents were killed in the first attack on the capitol.”

“I’m sorry.” She touched his arm and that same tingle jolted through her body again.

He placed a hand over hers and when he looked up his golden eyes held gratitude. “Thank you. It’s been a few years, but it still hurts sometimes.”

“What about your grandfather?”

He shook his head. “He doesn’t have very long now. Every time I see him, he slips a little further away. The last time, he didn’t even know who I was.”

He watched her lower her eyes. “That’s terrible.”

He smiled a little. “I don’t see how a sweet little thing like you could be related to that monster Zenfered.”

She gave a small nervous chuckle. “Well, that’s a long story.”

K-three gave her a slightly puzzled look. “Exactly how was that accomplished? Your mother and father are obviously different species.”

Mira smiled. “That’s a long story too. But my dad figured out a way to combine their DNA and create me and eventually my cousins.”

K-three raised an eye ridge. “Really? That’s incredible, especially for a planet with such limited technology.”

Zan stepped from the kitchen. “You over your funk, bro?”

He nodded and Mira slipped her hand from beneath his. “Yeah.”

“Good. Where’s Chase? We’re wasting time sitting around here. I’m ready for some hover-boarding.”

“Back there.” K-three shot a thumb in the direction of the dojo. “What’s back there anyways? Sounds like he’s found a bag to me.”

Mira chuckled. “That’s our dojo – our training room, so he probably did.”

Zan lifted an eye ridge. “Training room?”

Raph snorted as he and Cat came out of the doorway behind him. “We’re ninjas, if you hadn’t noticed.” He shot K-three a look. “And so is she.”

K-three seemed to be pleased by this. He grinned. “That’s pretty cool. You’ll have to show me some of your moves some time.”

Mira blushed. “Uh, okay.”

Raph glared. _I’ll show you some moves you little punk!_

Leo stepped up beside him. “You’re more than welcome to use the dojo, if you want.”

Chase came down the short hall. He gave Leo a sheepish grin. “Thanks, but I kind of already did.”

Leo shrugged and Shinta yawned in his arms. Sarah stepped up beside him. “Time for your nap, sweetie.”

Leo let her take him and he nuzzled her neck, twisting his little fingers into her long brown locks. “Not sleepy.”

She chuckled as she crossed the room to Leo’s door. “I’ve heard that one before.”

“So, where’re we headed? And do we have an escort?” Chase eyed Mira and she blushed again. Chase’s emotions were all too raw and she knew them well enough after being around so many males for so long.

“That depends,” Donnie joined them, “if you have more of these holo-projectors.”

K-three shook his head. “Sorry, they only came in sets of two. I didn’t figure I’d need more than three.”

“Well, unless I can duplicate this one, then the answer is still no.” Donnie said flatly, meeting the Turtleoid’s gaze.

Kaz pushed through his uncles. “Maybe, I could show you some places down here to board.”

“That’s a great idea, Kazzey.” Mikey patted him on the shoulder. “We know some righteous places to skate.”

Zan and Chase exchanged a look with K-three. Zan grinned. “What are we waiting for?” Behind them, Sarah stepped from the bedroom, pulling the door to but not shut.

“If you’re staying down here, then there isn’t any reason I couldn’t go too.” Mira looked at her father expectantly. He frowned, exchanging a worried glance with his wife over their daughter’s head.

Mikey put a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll keep an eye on them.”

Don sighed. “Well, I guess so. It will give me a chance to examine this technology.” He turned the metallic bracelet over in his hands. And before he could say much else, they had all snatched up their boards and were following Mikey out the sewer entrance.

Donnie had just turned to head for his lab, when there was a small crash followed by a cry from Leo’s room. The leader hurried to the door and flipped on the light. Shinta was on the floor crying and beside him was Amaya’s mirror, the front shattered. “Shinta!” Leo cringed at the sharpness in his own tone. He knew his son hadn’t meant it, but it broke his heart to see the gift in pieces.

Shinta meanwhile was wailing and Sarah pushed past Leo to scoop the tot into her arms. “He’s just a baby, Leo. He didn’t know any better.” She instinctively gave the little turtle a once over and she frowned. There was a small cut on his hand. “Shh, it’s okay. Let’s get this cleaned up.” The two year old continued to cry as she carried him from the room.

Cat followed after her. “I’ll help.”

Leo watched them go with a forlorn expression. Raph put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay, bro. We’ve all made mistakes.”

“Yeah, but maybe you’d consider using the crib now.” Donnie advised. “It would be a lot safer for him. You still have a lot of breakable and dangerous things in your room.”

Leo frowned. “Maybe, but he doesn’t like being by himself.”

“He’ll get used to it. The rest did.” Donnie assured him.

Raph glanced over his shoulder at Splinter’s room. “I may have a better idea.”


	5. The Challenge

Kaz’s wheels skidded along the pipe, making a scrapping noise as he made a sharp turn. They’d made their way to the giant storm drains that were currently dry. The overhead lights cast a dim orange glow over the tunnel that was nearly twenty feet in diameter. Mikey and Mira clapped as Kaz did a few tricks for their guests on his skateboard. After a few more minutes he came back and grinned at them.

“That’s pretty good little dude.” Zan complimented and Kaz’s grin seemed to grow. The older turtle set his board on the ground and pressed a button to make it hover. “But check this out.” He took the pipe with a whoop and did a complete circle. Within moments Chase and K-three had joined him. The three did tricks that would never have been possible with a skateboard, like dropping from the roof and catching themselves with their boards before they hit the ground.

“That is so cool!” Kaz cheered as he watched them do dozens of tricks, all the while the three rough-housed trying to knock each other from their boards. Mikey glanced at him. It had been a long time since Kaz had looked at him like that.

Mira giggled as she watched them. For some reason the three reminded her of her father and uncles. There was a deep comradery among them that was very evident on the surface. K-three managed to escape another two prong attack by his buddies and came to a stop in front of her.  He smiled. “Want to try?”

Mikey frowned. “I don’t know-“

“It’s like skateboarding, right?” She asked the Turtleoid, ignoring her uncle.

“Yeah, it’s pretty simple. I’m sure you’ll get it.” K-three hopped off and offered her a hand to help her on. “All you have to do is lean forward to go and lean back to stop. The rest is just balance.”

She nodded as she gave the board a little test by leaning forward just a bit. It moved and she quickly realized it didn’t need much pressure to make it move. She glanced at Mikey and then at K-three before she took off. K-three couldn’t help but grin as she shot past his friends. He marveled at her agility as she did several of their simpler tricks. She was laughing by the time she came to an abrupt halt in front of him. The stop was a little too abrupt though and the board slipped out from under her. He caught her around the waist and her arms fell around his neck.

He was suddenly swamped by her scent, that of roses in the springtime, and he pushed down the desire to hold her tighter than what was really necessary. Her skin was soft, smooth, and warm. The pounding of her heart seemed to echo inside his own plastron as her breath left a blazing river of moister on his neck. “Careful.” He gave a little chuckle and Mira blushed feverishly.

Her heart raced as his warm breath danced across her cheek. She leaned back to look at him and the amusement in his golden eyes sucked her in like a million suns. His strong arms around her felt incredible, both protective and gentle. For a moment she savored the emotions flowing from him. He was genuinely concerned for her safety. Worry and amusement pressed into her, making her smile a little. “Um, sorry.”

Mikey cleared his throat, reminding them of his presence. “Good save, bro. But you can put her down now.”

K-three, who stood a good head and shoulders above Mira, lowered her to her feet and she stepped away. “Thanks.”

He smiled. “No problem.”

“Can I try?” Kaz pulled at K-three’s arm and the Turtleoid grinned.

“Sure kid.” He collected the board and helped the youngster on it.

“Be careful Kaz.” Mikey felt himself frown again. When had that become a normal expression for him? It certainly seemed like he was doing a lot more of that lately.

Kaz merely gave his father a little nod, before testing the board as Mira had done. Then just like she had done he took off.  He laughed and hooted as he barreled around the tunnel. Mikey cringed when he tried to do a few of the visitors’ tricks. Mira giggled. “He sure is enjoying himself.” She smiled up at K-three. “Thanks, we don’t get a lot of excitement down here.”

He smiled sadly. “He reminds me of my little brother.” Her smile wavered slightly as she felt his sadness again and his fondness for the lost sibling.

Kaz watched Zan do another full circle around the pipe. He wondered if he could do it as well. Without further thought he headed up the pipe, but he didn’t pick up enough speed to make it the whole way. Near the top both the board and his courage wavered. And in an instant he was falling.

“Kaz!” Mikey shouted. He was too far away. There wasn’t enough time to get to him.

Zan saw him falling in the same moment and kicked off his board. He caught the preteen in midair and landed safely on the tunnel floor. “You okay, little dude?”

Kaz was not in the slightest frightened, he was beaming. “That was awesome!”

Zan chuckled as he set him on his feet. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Mikey and Mira rushed up. Mikey knelt in front of him, grabbing his shoulders in a slight panic. “Are you okay, Kazzey?”

“Did you see him, Dad? That was so cool!”

Mikey nodded, willing his heart to catch up with him. “Yeah, cool.” He stood, still gripping his son’s shoulders, to gaze at Zan. “Thanks.”

Zan shrugged. “No, prob, pops.”

Mikey sighed. Maybe he was getting old, that little fall nearly scared him out of his shell. Kaz gazed up at Zan with bright eyes. “Your boards are so neat! Could you show me some more tricks?”

Mikey made a face. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”

Chase stopped beside them with K-three’s board in hand. “Hey, K-three can make it more kid friendly. Can’t you, bro?”

K-three took the board and flipped it over. “Sure, all I’ve got to do is reduce the power output.” He took a small tool from his pocket and adjusted the flow of power. “There. Try this kid.”

Kaz hopped on it and leaned forward. He frowned as he moved at less than half the speed it had earlier. Mikey grinned. “That’s better.”

Kaz’s frown increased. “That’s bogus, Dad. I can’t go anywhere with it like this.”

“Well, maybe not but it’ll keep you from busting your shell.” Mikey pointed out.

An idea struck Zan. “You think you could do better, pops?”

Mikey raised an eye ridge. “You’ve got no idea who you’re talking to, dude. I could skate circles around you.”

Zan smirked. “Big talk, prove it.”

Mikey grabbed Zan’s board. “Fine, you asked for it.” He gave the board a quick look and pressed the button as K-three had done. Once it was hovering he jumped on. How hard could it be? He’d just watched both Mira and Kaz show off some pretty good moves. He gave a little lean and the board took off. It moved faster than he expected, but he was easily able to maintain his balance. After a few minutes, he even did a few of their tricks, proving he was able to shred just as good as his younger companions.

At last he came back and stopped in front of them. He hopped off with a smug grin. “Think twice before you challenge a ninja, dude.” Mira pressed a hand to her mouth to cover a small giggle.

Zan grinned back. “Not bad, but you can’t get much speed in here. There isn’t enough room.”

Chase had caught on. “Yeah, you really need wide open spaces to really let the throttle out.”

Mira glanced at K-three. It was plain he’d caught on as well. She wasn’t so sure what they were trying to do was such a good idea. Her father would be angry if he learned they’d gone to the surface during the day. K-three glanced down at her and she felt the spark of mischief in him. “Yeah, it’s too bad we can’t head topside so we could really see what you can do.”

Mikey frowned yet again. He had an odd feeling he was being goaded into something. “Sorry, but we’re definitely not going to the surface.”

Chase sighed. “Too bad, I guess you won’t be able to show us that you can out board us then.”

Zan propped an elbow on Chase’s shoulder, which was a little awkward as his friend was slightly taller than him. “Forget it, man. These old dudes don’t know how to have fun.” He sighed dramatically. “You can’t blame him. It’s probably been ages since he was on a board.”

Mikey narrowed his eyes. He couldn’t let that pass. It just wasn’t who he was. “Follow me.”

Ten minutes later they were standing on the rooftop of an abandoned apartment building. Mira gazed around. She’d never been up here in the daylight and it still felt a little wrong. Kaz was hanging close to her, uncertain in the new environment. She slipped an arm around his shoulders, silently reassuring him. The problem was she was still a bit uncertain herself. How many times had she been told not to go above in the daylight? How many times had she been warned of the dangers? And now here they were in the open in the middle of the day. It was enough to put her on edge.

K-three stepped up beside her. “Don’t worry, no one will spot you.” He slipped off his holo-projector and put it on her wrist. He pressed the on button, making Mira’s image shimmer into that of a young girl with long brown hair and pale skin. She glanced down at Kaz worriedly. K-tree frowned and called over his shoulder to Chase. “Hey, give me your holo, Chase.”

The turtle frowned. “What for?”

K-three snorted. “Just give it over.” Chase gave him a confused look but passed the device to him nonetheless. K-three slipped it onto Kaz’s wrist and turned it on. Kaz appeared as a young blonde haired boy. K-three smiled reassuringly at him. “Now, everyone will think you’re human.”

Both Mira and Kaz relaxed a bit, but she kept her arm around his slender shoulders. She gave K-three a grateful smile. “Thanks.”

Meanwhile, Mikey and Zan were in the middle of a heated discussion about the rules to their race.

“You got to stay on the rooftops.” Mikey said firmly. “No buzzin’ the locals. Dig?”

“Fine. The first one to that tower there,” Zan indicated a cell tower about five blocks away, “and back wins.” He grinned. “I have to warn you, pops. I’m the best at hover-boarding.”

Mikey snorted. “Yeah, we’ll see about that, dude.”

Kaz frowned. He was still nervous. “Dad?”

Mikey shot him a quick smile. “It’s okay, Kazzey. I’ll be right back.”

Mira frowned as well, her arm tightening around her smaller cousin. “You don’t have to do this, you know?”

Mikey raised an eye ridge. “Dudette, I’ve got this in the bag.”

&*&*&*&*&*&*

Eznic folded his arms as he watched the crowded market street before him empty of people. “What’s with these humanoids? They act like they’ve never seen a turtle before.”

Prog grabbed an apple from a stand and took a bite. “Who cares? They’ve got good food.”

Eznic shot him glare over his shoulder, which his companion seemed completely obvious to. “Will you stop thinking with your stomach. We’re supposed to be looking for K-three and his crew.” He narrowed his eyes and slammed his fist into his palm. “I’ve got a score to settle with him.”

Prog collected a few apples before following his buddy down the street. “How you gonna find him? Their cloak is shielding their ship from us.”

Eznic spotted a man cowering behind his stand. “We’ll ask. It’d be hard to hide his ugly mug on this human infested rock.” He was about to yank the man out from behind his stand when there was a noise above them. They both looked up to see two turtles on hover-boards shot across the rooftop nearby. He raised an eye ridge. “Hover-boards?”

Prog shoved the last apple into his mouth. “Guess we won’t have to look for them after all.”

“Come on.” Eznic charged up the closest fire escape. He stopped at the top to peer across the rooves to see where the group was congregated. “Why are they hanging out with these humans?” He eyed Mira and Kaz.

Prog sneered. “Don’t know and don’t care. Let’s go say hello.”

Eznic watched as the two turtles got back on the boards and headed their way again. “I’ve got a better idea. Let’s give them a little surprise.” He slipped onto the roof behind a small shed. Prog followed, though a little slower. He never was much good at being stealthy and it was rather difficult considering how large he was.

Eznic waited for them to get closer. As they neared, he could tell that while he knew one of the turtles, the other wasn’t familiar. He waited until they were nearly on top of him before he stepped out. Zan swerved to the side to avoid crashing into him. Mikey leaned back a little too fast and the board slipped out from under him as it had done Mira earlier. But this time there was no one there to catch him. He fell hard on the roof with a grunt.

Zan made a loop and came to a stop beside Mikey. He helped him up and turned to glare at the interlopers. “What are you trying to do, Eznic? Give us a heart attack?”

Mikey rubbed the back of his head. “Either that or he’s trying to break our skulls.”

Eznic ignored Mikey in favor of Zan. “What are you doing on this dump of a planet? Hiding out?”

Just a few rooftops away, K-three growled as he watched Eznic step out to startle his companions. “That arrogant piece of-“

“Dad!” Kaz started for the edge of the roof as he saw his father fall off the board.

Mira caught his arm. “Wait, Kazzey!”

He stared up at her in bafflement. “But-“

“You’re not used to a rooftop run.” She squatted in front of him. “Get on.”

K-three lifted an eye ridge at her but before he could offer to carry the boy, she’d taken off. He watched her spring across the gap between the buildings with ease for a moment. There was definitely more to this girl than meets the eye.

“Come on!” Chase took off after them.

K-three took out his board, which he’d already adjusted back to full power, and hopped on. He made it to Zan’s side first. He glared at the two newcomers. “What the hell, Eznic? You following us now?”

Eznic smirked. “What’s the matter, didn’t want to share your little hideaway?”

K-three glared. “Who said I was hiding?”

Prog snorted. “You split just after classes let out. What you doing way out here?”

“What we’re doing here is none of your business, dimwit.” Chase stopped on Zan’s other side.

Mira stopped on the rooftop just behind him and let Kaz down. The youngster ran to his father. “Are you okay?”

Mikey smiled reassuringly. “I’m fine, Kazzey.”

Mira stepped up between K-three and Mikey to examine the two new Turtleoids. Eznic was roughly the same size as K-three, he had a firm jawline and piercing red-brown eyes. Prog stood another foot taller than his companion. But although he was large, he didn’t seem particularly muscular. He gave her a curios look. “What’s with the humans? Are you collecting pets now?”

“Pets!” Mira roared.

Eznic raised an eye ridge at her. She might look like a human, but she sure didn’t smell like one. He took a step in her direction and K-three took a step in his. Eznic met his fiery golden gaze. “I’m not so sure she is a human.”

K-three growled. “Your grudge is with me. They’ve got nothing to do with this.”

Eznic took two quick steps forward and caught Mira’s wrist. “Just what I thought a holo-projector.” He pressed the button and Mira returned to her normal visage. He raised an eye ridge again and smiled at her. “Well, what’s a pretty little thing like you hiding behind this piece of junk for?”

Both Mikey and K-three started forward, but Mira yanked her hand away from him with a scowl. “Take your hands off me!”

He leaned forward with a sly grin. “You’ve got some spunk. I like that.” He reached out to touch her again and Mira’s eyes widened. In the second it took her to take a half-step back, Eznic was being tackled to the ground by two very angry turtles.


	6. Tangles

Leo’s cell chirped and he put down the hammer he was holding. “Hey, April. What’s up?”

“Have you guys seen the news?”

“Yeah, we saw. But we’ve been kind of busy. They aren’t causing any kind of trouble are they?”

“Not unless you call creating a tidal wave of paparazzi trouble.”

Leo gave a small chuckle. “Not exactly.”

“Well, they may not be causing trouble, but trouble may be finding them. My contact in the military says they’re sending people here as we speak. I thought, maybe you guys should let them know. I’m sure they won’t be too comfortable in a holding tank somewhere.”

He frowned. “Yeah, I’m sure they wouldn’t be. We have some friends that might be willing to help with that.”

“Friends?”

He sighed. “It’s a long story. They’ll be here a while, so maybe we could introduce you. But for now, let me see if we can get them to help with those two…tourists.”

April sounded really confused by his choice of words. “Uh, okay. Call me later.”

“Sure.” He hung up and looked over at Raph, who was nailing a plank of wood into place. “I think we’re about to have some more company.”

&*&*&*&*&*

Mikey rolled across the roof with K-three and Eznic for a minute, until Prog pried him off. Mikey found a place to kick off him and flipped over the large turtle’s back. He grabbed him in an arm lock. This is the point at which, as luck would normally have it, his phone came to life. He glanced at the caller ID and groaned. How did Leo do it? He swore his brother was psychic sometimes. He always managed to pick the most inopportune time to call and somehow he always knew when Mikey was up to something.

He gave his captive’s wrist a little twist. “Not a word, dude.” Prog gave a nod in agreement. With his free hand, Mikey answered the phone. “Hey, Leo. This ain’t the best time. We’re kind of busy.”

There was a pause on the other end and Mikey cringed when Leo finally spoke, his suspicion evident. “What’s going on, Mikey?”

“Uh, nothing.” Mikey watched as K-three and Eznic continued to wrestle and exchange blows on the other side of the roof.

It was apparent Leo didn’t believe him, but chose not to peruse it at the moment. “I need to talk to K-three.”

Mikey frowned. “Uh, he’s a little busy at the moment. Could I take a message?”

Leo’s voice now held irritation. “Mikey….” He warned.

Prog tried to pull away from him and Mikey twisted his wrist again while glaring at the Turtleoid. “No, really. He’s just busy.”

Leo groaned. “Fine. When you get through goofing off, tell K-three those ‘friends’ of his are about to have some company. He’d better send them on their way or get them out of sight.”

Mikey frowned. “The army?”

“Yeah. April says they’re on their way to take their ship.”

Prog suddenly twisted, trying to throw Mikey off balance. The turtle jumped back out of range and hurriedly wrapped up the conversation. “Oh, okay, I’ll tell him. Bye.” He hung up and glared. “Seriously, dude? You couldn’t see I was on a phone call?”

Prog snorted. “You said don’t talk. You didn’t say don’t fight.”

Mikey put his hands on his hips. “Well, if you’re going to be that way, I won’t tell you that the army’s about to snatch your ship then.”

Across the rooftop, Eznic suddenly stopped fighting. “What?”

Mikey folded his arms. “Yeah, the army’s about to grab your ride, dude.”

K-three allowed him up but kept himself between his rival and Mira. “Well, you did kind of ask for it landing in the middle of the city like that.”

Eznic snorted as he dusted off his black pants. “These people don’t have a proper landing area, so I found the best spot I could.” He narrowed his eyes at K-three. “Where exactly did you park?”

Chase glared. “That isn’t any of your business. But we didn’t cause a scene when we put down.”

Prog shook his wrist a bit. “So, what is your business here, anyway?”

K-three sighed, folding his arms. “We’re visiting friends. Now, if that’s all you came for, I suggest you get in your ship and book. I have a feeling these humans don’t take kindly to aliens.”

Eznic’s gaze shifted to Mira and she took a subconscious step in K-three’s direction. He glanced at K-three. “If you’re staying, so are we.”

Mikey grimaced. “No way, dude. You guys are doing nothing but causing riots. You need to split.”

Prog moved to stand beside Eznic. “And the rest of you don’t?”

Zan lifted his wrist to point at the metal band. “We’ve got holo-projectors. We won’t be drawing attention.”

Eznic snorted. “So, we’ll just keep out of the way.”

Mikey frowned. It might take a lot more to get rid of these guys than they’d thought. “What about your ship?”

“We’ll move it.” Eznic started for the roof’s edge and the fire-escape they’d come up.

Chase frowned and shot K-three a look. “We’d better go with them.”

Mikey sighed. “Mira, take Kaz back to the lair.”

Mira frowned. “What are you going to do?”

Mikey eyed Prog as he headed down the ladder. “I’m going to escort these guys back to their ship.”

K-three frowned. “Zan go with Mira and Kaz.”

Zan scowled. “Now, I’m on babysitting duty?”

K-three gave a long-suffering sigh and began to follow Mikey down the ladder. “Just take them home, Zan.”

Zan sighed and turned towards the building they had come up. “Come on.”

Kaz glanced down at the metal band around his wrist. He hurried over to Chase and handed it to him. “You might need this. Thanks for letting me borrow it.”

Mira glanced down at the same metal bracelet around her wrist and then at the descending form of K-three on the ladder. She hurried over and handed Chase hers as well. He saw her nervous glance at his friend and he smirked. “I’ll keep an eye on him.” He didn’t elaborate on who ‘him’ was, but she had an idea it wasn’t her uncle.

She blushed slightly. “Thanks.” She turned and hurried towards Kaz, hiking him up on her back and began to spring back across the rooftops towards home.

*&*&*&*&*&*

Mikey stared across the expansive gap between them and the ship. The area was already crawling with the army. Barricades surrounded the ship and soldiers stood on all sides. “Uh, oh, looks like we’re too late, dudes. The army’s already got your ship under lock and key.”

Eznic frowned. “Well, we’ll just have to get it back.”

“And how do you plan on doing that, you idiot?” Chase growled. “You gonna fight your way through them. I’d like to see that.”

Prog slammed his fist against his palm. “That wouldn’t be so hard. What’s the matter, scared?”

“Shh.” Mikey glared into the dark alley at them. If these four didn’t can it, they’d give away their hiding place.

Eznic rubbed his chin. “You got those holo- projectors, right?”

K-three scowled. “Yeah, but I don’t plan on sharing them with you.”

Eznic rolled his eyes. “They have a stealth mode, don’t they?”

K-three glared. “I’m not letting you borrow my gear.”

Their conversation had caught Mikey’s attention. He turned to them in the shadows. “Will this stealth mode get you past all those soldiers?”

Eznic nodded. “We can walk right out in front of them and they won’t even know it.”

Mikey shot K-three a quick look. “If it’ll get these dudes out of our hair then do it.”

K-three glared. “But that only leaves me two bands.”

Mikey eyed Eznic and Prog. “Once you dudes are on board, you better split.”

The two Turtleoids shook their heads. “We aren’t leaving.” Eznic reminded him.

It was Mikey’s turn to scowl. He was beginning to see what K-three didn’t like about these guys. “Now that the army knows you’re here, it’s not like you’ll just be able to hide.”

Eznic snorted. “We can just launch, hit orbit, turn on our cloak and re-land.”

K-three groaned as he dragged a hand down his face. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

“No way. Me and you still have a score to settle.” Eznic shook a fist at him.

Mikey cut off the argument. “Fine, whatever. But you better make it fast.” He pointed to the large truck and crane that was to carry their ship off.

Eznic snatched one of the bands from Chase. “Time to move.”

K-three exchanged a meaningful look with his friend. He took the second band and put it on his wrist. “I’m coming along.” The two adjusted the bands so that they shimmered and vanished from sight. Mikey felt the whoosh of air as the two brushed past him. They all held their breath as the two crossed the large open space between the alley and the ship.

Once the ship’s engines ignited and it took flight, Prog turned to Chase and thrust him against the wall. “If your friend tries anything funny, I’m gonna rip you apart.”

Chase growled, shoving his hands away. “That’s my best friend up there, bub. And if Eznic tries anything, I’m going to show you the real meaning of pain.”

Mikey watched the ship disappear in the clouds above and then turned to the two squabbling turtles. He glanced at Chase. “How long till we know they’re safe?”

Chase pulled a little metal device from his pocket. It was about the same size as a cell phone. “He’ll give us a call on this.”

&*&*&*

Inside the ship K-three and Eznic were in a glaring match. They both silently worked the controls, landing the ship in the center of Central Park. They kept the cloak on as to not attract attention. K-three finally turned to him in the co-captain’s chair. “Now give me back my holo- projector.”

Eznic sneered, deflecting the demand. “What are you really doing here, K-three?”

K-three snorted. “I’m trying to relax and get away from your worthless shell.”

Eznic propped his elbow on the control panel. “I think you’re here for something else.”

K-three growled. “I’m not interested in playing games with you.”

Eznic smirked. “But I bet I know someone you are interested in playing games with.”

K-three’s eyes narrowed dangerously. He stood to his full height, fists clenching at his side. “Stay away from her.”

“I didn’t smell your mark on her. And that makes her fair game.”

K-three growled fiercely. “I mean it, Eznic. She isn’t part of this twisted game you keep playing with me. There are plenty of girls back on Shellri-La you can be with and you have been with.”

Eznic stood. “How about we let her decide? Once she’s been with a real turtle she won’t go back to gutter trash like you.”

K-three’s right hook caught him completely off guard and the two crash through the interior of the ship and down the ramp. Outside the afternoon shadows were growing as the sun descended into the horizon. The sky was glowing a bright orange and they would soon be hidden in darkness. K-three’s communicator chirped and Chase’s voice came over it.

“Hey, K-three, you done yet? Let us know where you are and we’ll pick you up.”

K-three landed another blow to Eznic’s chin. He pulled out his communicator and responded while glaring at the turtle on the ground. “In the park.”

“Where in the park?” Mikey asked from the other end.

K-three glanced around him. “Near a lake.”

“We’ll be there in fifteen.”

&*&*&*

Mira frowned as they ambled along the sewer tunnel. She would have much rather gone with her uncle and K-three. Zan was nice but his attention was a little unnerving and his emotions were erratic. Not like K-three’s, which were calm and steady. It was funny how she’d become attached to him so quickly. He was attractive, there was no doubt in that. Tall and muscular. His coloring was different from her father and uncles, a softer shade of green that reminded her of moss covered rocks. And his eyes were a totally different world. They were like molten gold, beautiful and powerful. They were a place she could easily get lost in.

Behind her Zan was in the middle of one of Kaz’s inquisitions. The youngster trotted alongside him posing one annoying question after another. Zan answered each with patients, but his attention was fixated on the young woman who walked in front of him. They proceeded in this way until they finally reached the sewer entrance to their home. She punched in the code and the great solid doors slid aside with the sound of brick grinding against cement.

They were surprised to find Leo in Raph crossing the living room with boxes. Kaz ran over to his mother who was seated on the couch. “What’s going on?”

Raph came out of the newly reconstructed bedroom. He and Leo had replaced the shoji screens with real walls and a door. He smiled at Kaz. “Well, we’ve got you a little surprise, kiddo.”

Kala smiled. “And I think you’re going to like it.”

Cat came around the corner and smiled as well. “Come see.” She gestured for him to follow her down the hall. As they stepped into his door, his jaw dropped. No longer was the room cluttered with two beds and dozens of toys that didn’t belong to him, but one bed and one dresser stood with low small shelves lining the walls.

Kaz blinked up at Kala, who’d followed him to the door. “I don’t understand.”

Cat chuckled. “We moved Yoshi to the other bedroom, so you can have this one all to yourself.”

Kaz’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Leo put a hand on his shoulder. “We thought it was time to give you a space of your own.”

In the living room, Zan settled onto one of the couches as Yoshi came out of the new bedroom beaming. “Mira, come see my new room.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the redesigned space.

Mira gazed around and spotted the second bed. It was low to the ground with rail on one side. She blinked at it in surprise. “What’s this?”

“Daddy said I have to share with Shinta.” He explained. But he didn’t seem too deterred by this information, as he settled down to arrange his toys and books on one of the selves.

Sarah stepped into the doorway with the fore mentioned tot on her hip. She gave her daughter a knowing smile. “I take it things went well.”

Mira blushed feverishly. “Mom! That is _so_ an invasion of privacy!” Had her mother felt what she had when K-three had held her? Or when he touched her? There had to be some kind of law against a mother knowing exactly how you felt around a guy you were interested in!

Sarah chuckled lightly. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. It’s just a habit. I do it every time you leave the lair. Call it my overprotective streak.” She set Shinta on the floor and the toddler scurried over to the pile of toys. “Speaking of which, I think you and your dad need to have a talk.”

Mira’s face shot up in something akin to horror. “You told him!”

Sarah gave another small chuckle. “No, sweetie. I’d never do a thing like that. But I still think you’d better talk. He’ll figure it out pretty quick. If He hasn’t already.” The sound of the elevator door opening made her turn back into the living room. As Mikey, K-three, and Chase exited the car she noted their sour faces. She understood why when the next two turtle stepped out. “What are they doing here?” The small bit of alarm in her voice drew Donnie from the lab and Raph and Leo from down the hall.

Mikey folded his arms across his chest and glowered. “They wouldn’t leave.”

Raph dragged a hand down his face while Leo groaned. The elder brother shook his head. “So you thought you’d bring them home with you?”

Mikey shrugged. “Well, it was either that or leave them out there to make more trouble.”

Eznic watched Mira edge around the doorframe and Mikey shot him a warning glare. He and K-three had already advised him to keep his hands off the teen. And if he didn’t he would receive several broken body parts in return. Mira smiled at K-three and Donnie frowned. This was going to be an interesting evening to say the least.


	7. In the Dark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for the lackluster chapter before. I had been very sick and on a lot of painkillers. But I'm much better now and this chapter will make up for it. I promise!

Mira tossed and turned, letting out a frustrated sigh. The tension in her home was crushing and her own excitement drove her to sit up. She looked about the dark room for anything to distract her mind. Dinner had gone as well is one might have expected with two uninvited guest. It had been quiet and tense. The only discussion that had aired was that of their visitors’ plans for the following day.

Donnie had surprised them, explaining that he had indeed been able to replicate the alien technology. He’d only had enough parts to create three more holo-projectors. They were not as nice or as clean as the ones K-three had brought and he had not design them to be waterproof. He had also explained that he was unable to replicate the energy source, so he had used earth batteries. He said these new holos should last at least as long as the wristbands though. So, it had been with some reluctance that he had agreed for Mira to go with them, but only with an escort. One of the brothers would always accompany them on any outing.

Mira gave another frustrated sigh and pushed herself up from the bedside. Maybe a short walk in the sewer tunnel would clear her head and give her enough space between her and the others that she could rest. Using her ninja stealth, she slipped from her bedroom and down the hall to the sewer entrance. She deftly shut off the alarm and keyed in the code to open the door. She gave a little glance around when the bricks scraped against the cement. She glanced at the open door that had once led into her grandfather’s room so many years ago. But there was not a noise or single sign of life to be found from her sleeping cousins.

She smiled slightly to herself as she passed into the sewer tunnel beyond. After putting Shinta to bed in his new room, her uncle had paced outside the door. Waiting and watching for any sign that his son may be upset. It had finally been with some hesitancy that he had slipped off to his own bedroom. He had left his door open in case of any sign of trouble, while the rest of the family had headed off to bed themselves.

And their guest? Well, instead of carting them all back to their own ships, it had been decided that they could sleep in the dojo. Which at the moment was the source of the tension in the lair. And it spurred Mira on until she reached the junction. Here the water from dozens of pipes above crashed down like so many waterfalls into the great basin at the bottom. She sat down and dangled her feet over the edge, staring into the bottomless pit before her. She hadn’t traveled far, no more than a few hundred feet from the lair door. Yet, it was far enough to give her some sense of isolation. This had become her quiet place - the place she could center herself. She closed her eyes and listened to the water dripping from the huge pipes above.

She gave another heavy sigh. It had been hard over the past few years learning to control her empathic powers by herself. She hadn’t realized just how much her Aunt Amaya had helped in that regard until she was gone. She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she did not register the soft footsteps until they were nearly on top of her. She stiffened for a moment and then relaxed. She knew who approached and even here in her private place, she welcomed his presence.

He settled on the cold cement beside her, dangling one leg over the edge and resting his arm across the other knee. “Something wrong little flower?”

She wondered briefly why he wouldn’t use her name. But the endearment was not unwanted either. “No, just thinking.”

He frowned a little. “Do we make you uncomfortable?”

She looked into the water avoiding his eyes. “Well… Maybe a little.” He shifted a bit and she glanced at him, then back into the black depths. “It’s not anything that you’ve done. I’m just not used to having strangers around. It’s usually just the family and I’m used to them.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Their souls are like a constant hum inside my head, like a comforting and familiar melody. It can take time for me to get used to others and sometimes that can unnerve me a bit.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize. Do I make you uncomfortable?”

“No!” She hurriedly replied with perhaps a little too much fervor, because he grinned. She blushed, her eyes dancing around the room in search of anything to look at except the molten gold that seared into her. “I like your presence... I mean, a lot better than the others anyways.”

He moved his hand to rest on top of hers. It was so much larger that it nearly encompassed it. “Good.” He rumbled and she looked up at him, finally meeting his eyes. “Because I like yours too.”

A tingle raced up her arm and she gasped. She could feel his emotions flow over her in waves. They were bashful and confident, tentative yet firm. There was no denying the desire blazing behind that golden gaze though. But was it only his desire? Her breath caught. No, her own instincts soared to the forefront. He reached out to stroke her cheek and she shivered. He moved forward slowly. And she found herself accepting him into her personal space without even the slightest protest.

His lips pressed against hers was like nothing she’d ever felt before, warm and soft. Pressing yet hesitant, like he didn’t want to frighten her. Her logical mind fought against the desire to move closer, but there was no fighting the fire that raged through their blood. His arms wrapped around her pulling her plastron tight to his. Her arm snaked around his neck of their own accord.

Someone cleared their throat and Mira scrambled back so fast she nearly fell in the water. Blue eyes pierced the darkness of the tunnel beyond and she hurried to her feet. “Uh, Uncle Leo… I was just getting some fresh air.”

His frown was deep as he stepped from the shadows. “I see.”

Mira shifted nervously as K-three stood up behind her. She could feel both her uncle’s irritation and his disappointment. A horrible thought struck her. “Please don’t tell my dad.”

Leo’s gaze shifted from his niece to the young man. “You left the door open, Mira. Yoshi or Shinta could’ve gotten out. They could’ve gotten lost.”

“I’m sorry, I was trying to be quiet.” She peeked up at her uncle through her long lashes. “You won’t tell him Uncle Leo, will you? He’d be so mad.”

Leo’s gaze never left K-three. “I’ll think about it, if you go straight back to bed.”

It was not a request. It was an order. He was using the tone that said he would not be questioned. She stiffened, going automatically into an attention stance. “Yes, Uncle.” She shot K-three an apologetic look, then darted off down the tunnel.

K-three moved to follow her but Leo stopped him with a strong hand on his plastron. His voice was firm and the warning dire as he spoke. “I will not tolerate you disrupting my family. Even if she does have affections for you, you’ll be leaving in a few days. And she won’t be going with you.”

K-three dared to narrow his eyes at the older turtle. “You’d tell her not to come with me? You’d make her stay? What about her happiness?”

“I am thinking of her happiness and I don’t have to tell her. She already knows. And if you cared about her you wouldn’t ask her to go.”

K-three stared at him. “What? Why?”

“Have you considered her safety?” K-three’s eyes widened. Leo sighed, trying to remember what it was like to be young and impulsive. “You live in a war zone. Would you be able to protect her - to guarantee her safety?”

K-three’s eyes dropped away unable to hold the steely blue gaze any longer. He swallowed hard. He hadn’t considered that. All he had thought about was her. She had consumed his mind since nearly the moment he’d laid eyes on her. Would it be fair to drag her halfway across the galaxy into danger? He bit his lip and rubbed his sweating palms against his jeans. “No.” He finally croaked.

“I’m going to keep quiet about this for Mira’s sake, not for yours. Because I have a feeling if my brother gets wind of this, your shell is cracked. And that would only hurt her.”

Leo turned and headed back down the passage, K-three following at a much more subdued pace. His heart twisted and tumbled inside him like a roller coaster caught in high speed. He wanted to punch something and wretch at the same time. How could this have happened? He had finally found someone he couldn’t imagine living without.

Leo paused just inside the entrance to allow K-three to pass. The younger turtle didn’t dare to meet his eyes as he turned and stepped in back into the dojo. The soft scraping noise of the door closing behind him made him shudder. He laid back down on his pallet. Sleep would not come to him tonight.

Leo sighed as he watched the forlorn turtle enter the dojo. Maybe he shouldn’t have interfered, but it was better to stop things now before Mira became too attached. He glanced down the hall towards the girl’s room. Something in the back of his mind told him that that bridge had already been crossed though.

Mira paced back and forth, glancing at the closed bedroom door. K-three was upset. Her uncle was upset. What now spurred her footfalls was no longer the tension in the lair but her own desire to touch him again, to smell him again, to fill the press of his strong body against hers. She pressed down the powerful emotions, knowing that if she allowed them to overwhelm her they would wake her mother. She took a few cleansing breaths and sat down on the side of her bed. Slowly she laid down, focusing on his embrace. It had been warm, strong and protective. And his emotions had reflected that, powerful and gentle. Sighing again she closed her eyes. Keeping the sensation at the forefront of her mind she finally drifted off into sleep.

&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*

Mikey groaned as his body came to awareness. Why did it seem like the older he got the worse things felt? There was a time when he could’ve taken that small fall off the hover-board without even feeling it the next morning. Now his spine ached and his joints cried, and he was pretty certain he had good size knot on the back of his head. Beside him Kala rolled over in his arms to look up at him. Her deep blue eyes held concern.

“What’s wrong?” Her tone was soft as she stroked her fingers along his chin and down his neck. She’d noticed the change in him over the past few days. He seemed tired and listless, not his normal energetic self.

He sighed. “Am I getting old?”

Kala stared at him for a long moment. “Is this a trick question? Because if you’re old, I am too.”

Mikey propped himself on his elbow to look down at her. He ran his fingers along the smooth pale skin of her cheek. “You’re definitely not old, babe. You’re as beautiful as the first day I saw you.”

She smiled up at him. “And you’re just as handsome as ever. So, I guess that means neither one of us is old just yet.”

He rolled onto his back with a little huff. “Maybe not, but it sure does feel like it sometimes.”

She crawled up to rest her palms on his plastron and prop her chin on them. “Maybe you’re just tired. You should try to sleep.”

He shook his head, playing with a strand of her yellow-orange hair. “I don’t know if I can. Maybe I should have Sarah find me something to help me sleep.”

Kala smiled a bit impishly, a sparkle in her eye. “I know something that will help you sleep.”

She giggled as he rolled her over and pinned her to the bed. He growled playfully, light flickering in his own blue eyes. “I like that plan a whole lot better.” He pressed his lips to her small pink ones, letting all his senses be consumed by the warm heavenly body beneath him. Kala moaned as he delved his tongue into her mouth, searching out her very soul. His arms tightened around her and she responded by wrapping her legs around his. She dragged her foot up the back of his calf making him shiver. Green hands caressed porcelain white skin in the dark, familiar and desired.

Mira stepped out into the hall and blushed slightly as she passed Mikey’s door. Why did they always have to do that in the morning? At least Cat and Raph as well as her parents had the decency to wait until night, when she was more likely to be asleep. Pushing past the amorous emotions pulsing from the room, she made her way into the kitchen. Her mother was busy making breakfast while her father sat at the long table sipping a cup of coffee. Mira fidgeted nervously for a moment, making her mother glance her way. She was grateful that her mother couldn’t read minds or she would know about her little midnight rendezvous. But it seemed her mother assumed she was nervous to talk to her father. Taking a deep breath, she slipped into the chair beside him.

“Um, Dad, thanks for letting me go with them.”

Donnie looked up from the tablet, where he’d been going over his most recent project, with a frown. His expression softened as he looked at his daughter. He sighed taking her hand. “I’m just trying to protect you, sweetheart. You’re only seventeen. You don’t really know what the world’s like yet. And people aren’t always what they appear to be.”

“But I like him, Daddy.”

The conviction in her eyes, made his heart twist. He gave another heavy sigh. “I know you do.”

“You do?”

He gave her a lopsided smile as if to say, ‘You really thought I didn’t know?’. She gave a small chuckle, realizing her detail oriented father had probably noticed at their first encounter. He squeezed her hand. “I know it can be hard sometimes when your heart wants to outweigh your head, but don’t let it control you. Try to keep a logical perspective on things.”

Sarah moved to stand behind his chair and place her hands on his shoulders. “But trust your heart as well. It will always know right from wrong.”

 Mira gave them a tentative smile. “You mean you trust me to make my own decisions?”

Donnie smiled as well. “Of course we do.” He glared over her shoulder in the direction of the living room, where their guests’ voices could now be heard. “It’s them I don’t trust.”

Sarah chuckled lightly, squeezing her mate’s shoulders. She turned back to the stove as Mira leaned over to place a kiss on her father’s cheek. “Thank you, Daddy.”

“Mm, something smells good.” Prog stepped into the doorway, his large girth nearly blocking it. He rubbed his stomach. “Ma’am, I must say your cooking is better than my mom’s. It’s been a long time since I had such good food.”

Sarah glanced over her shoulder with a smile. “Well, it is nice to be appreciated every once in a while.” If Eznic had said the same thing to her she would have questioned his motives. It seemed everything he did or said was calculated and perhaps even a bit deceptive, but Prog didn’t give her that impression. He seemed more lost than anything else. All he need was the proper direction. If Splinter had still been alive, he would have likely given him that direction.

Donnie smirked as he pushed back from the table, abandoning his tablet there. She felt the sparkle of mischief as he approached her. She turned back to the stove, trying to hide her smile. His large hands wrapped around her waist and his breath was hot in her ear as he whispered. “I appreciate you.” His husky tone sent a shiver down her spine.

Sarah quietly reminded him that they were not alone, while behind them Mira rolled her eyes. Part of her was annoyed by their behavior, but another part was comforted knowing just how much love they shared.

Prog averted his eyes and they landed on the female turtle. “So, you gonna go with us?”

Mira nodded. “Yeah.”

“Have you ever gone hang gliding before?”

She shook her head. There wasn’t a whole lot she’d been able to do in her life, confined mainly to the dark sewer tunnels. Her father and uncles had probably done more in their lives than she would ever have the possibility of accomplishing in hers. “No, but I understand the aerodynamics and how to use the thermals, lifts, waves and convergences to… “

Prog made a face and she stopped her analytical description. He chuckled. “No wonder you and K-three get along. You sound like him.”

“Everything is ready.” Sarah announced. She leaned up to give her spouse a discreet peck on the lips and whisper something that made him chuckle. Mira stood and helped load down the large table with the platters of food, while everyone slowly trickled in. She frowned a little when she saw K-three take a seat at the table between his buddies. He kept his eyes down, not looking at her. It was the first time he hadn’t made an effort to get as close as possible to her.

Leo was the one to note an obvious absence. “Hey, where’s Mikey and Kala?”

Mira blushed a little and Kaz opened his mouth to say they were still in bed, but Kala appeared at that moment. “Mikey is, uh, not feeling well. I told him to get some more sleep.”

Donnie frowned. “He’s sick?”

Kala quickly averted their concern. “Oh, no. More like tired.”

The brothers relaxed and Raph mumbled something about being lazy, earning him an elbow from Cat. Soon the discussion had turned to the day ahead. They were taking the company out to Ellenville to hang glide. Raph had agreed to go with them, playing escort for the day. After a trip to both ships to gather gear, they headed out.

Mira tried to talk to K-three during the ride despite her uncle’s watchful eye. But each time, he gave her a short answer and started talking with someone else. He even pretended not to hear her when she asked him to help her on with her harness. Chase had given his friend an odd look when he’d walked away. So Chase offered to help Mira into the harness himself and she had accepted politely. When the power on the holo-projectors got low, they headed home.

Dinner was a rambunctious recapping of the day’s events. Even K-three got wrapped up in talking about the beautiful landscape they’d flown over. But Mira sat quietly, giving him quick glances while studying her plate. As the evening went on, he did his best to avoid her, hanging with his friends and engaging the rest of the family. From time to time Chase and Zan would give him odd looks as if they knew he was forcing the interaction and avoiding one specifically. But he couldn’t avoid her forever, not in such tight quarters.

Most everyone had already gone to bed when K-three made a trip to the bathroom. As he returned, a small hand darted out from the kitchen and pulled him in. He swallowed hard as he stared down into the deep brown eyes. She wanted answers and he wasn’t sure he wanted to give them. She looked a little nervous and he frowned. “Did I… Did I do something wrong?”

He stared at her in shock. How could she ask him that? After he’d done his best to ignore her all day, this angel thought it was her fault. “No.”

“Then did I do something to offend you?” Her eyes appeared to moisten in the dim light from the living room.

He shook his head. “No, of course not.”

Her bottom lip protruded a bit and he nearly lost it right there. “Then I don’t understand. I thought we…I mean I like you and I thought you liked me.” She sighed and looked away into the dark room. “I’m sorry, I’m new at this.”

He blinked. “New at what?”

She cocked her head to the side. “At being in a relationship.” That gave him pause. He hadn’t considered that she might not have ever been in a relationship before, on this planet dominated by humans. She looked back up, meeting his eyes. “We are in a relationship, aren’t we?”

He tore his gaze away from those eyes that pleaded with him. He took one unsteady step back out of her light grip, fighting ever cell in his being to do so. “This is my fault.” His voice shook, though he tried desperately to keep it from doing so. “I led you on.” He took a struggling breath. “We can’t be in a relationship.” He set his jaw and forced the words out. “I don’t want to be with you.”


	8. Deadly Games

Shock and disbelief crashed together in her features. He was lying to her! He was standing right in front of her lying to her! How could he? After she had let him in, allowing him into her quiet place and letting him touch her in a way no other male had ever done before. She was an empath. And that meant she knew exactly how he had felt last night. So, him standing here denying that he ever had any feelings for her was a blatant lie.

K-three watched the pain and disbelief roll across her face to turn into defiance in her brown eyes. “You’re lying.”

He flushed. “What? Why would I…”

Her eyes flared and he took a sharp breath along with an involuntary step back. “Because I know what you’re feeling.”

He blinked at her in confusion. One of her uncles had said something to that effect earlier. “I don’t understand.”

She sighed, dropping her head a notch. “I’m an empath. I can sense other people’s emotions. Which is why know you’re lying.” She took a step in his direction forcing him another back. “But the question is, why are you lying to me?”

K-three felt his pulse race as she advanced on him another step. He cringed as his shell knocked against the kitchen wall. He hadn’t wanted things to go this way. That’s why he’d avoided her all day. Anger flashed in her eyes and the petite female pushed herself up until their beaks were nearly touching. Her eyes narrowed. “What did he say to you?”

K-three swallowed hard, averting his gaze. “Nothing.”

“Did he threaten you?” Mira was certain he wasn’t the type of guy to back down from a threat though.

He put up his hands in a placating gesture. “No.” He dropped his eyes to the floor. “This was my decision.”

Another lie. She made a small frustrated growl and K-three couldn’t stop his body’s reaction to it. His shell tightened and his skin burned. He saw a million calculations and theories flash through her eyes in under a second. She stepped back, folded her arms and turned towards the door. “You’ll have to prove it to me. Because I still don’t believe you.” She was playing a dangerous game now. One that might come back to haunt her. But she knew the truth, and she was bound and determined to prove it.

K-three’s jaw dropped and he stared at her as she stomped out of the kitchen. “Prove it?” He did not like the sound of that.

Sarah opened the door to their bedroom as Mira came bristling down the hall. “Mira?”

“It’s fine.” The teen brushed past her and did her best not to slam her door.

Sarah glanced back up the hall at K-three, who was just edging his way around the door from the kitchen. He looked lost and torn, and maybe even a bit frightened. She wondered what had transpired to make them both so upset.

“Is everything alright, love?” Donnie asked softly from behind her.

She sighed and shook her head. “Yes. It’s okay.” She closed the door, shutting out the soft hum of the television.

Eznic turned to K-three from the couch. He gave his rival a wicked grin. “Fair game.”

K-three snarled and stomped past them into the dojo. A few minutes later the sound of the punching bag receiving a good pounding could be heard.

&*&*&*&*&*&*&*

Leo glanced back down the line, checking the status of each climber on it. Mira climbed just behind him, her movements slow and steady. Although she’d never really had any true experience with rock-climbing, her ninja training did give her an edge. Behind her climbed K-three, his eyes trained on the female watching for any sign of danger. Although he had protested against them being together, he wasn’t about to let her be harmed.  At the end of Leo’s line was Chase, his eyes focused on the rock wall before him.

A second line dangled down the rock wall just a few feet away led by Zan. Eznic followed after the brash young Turtleoid, his movements confident and solid. And at the end of their line followed Prog. Being the largest, he’d been put there to anchor the line if there was trouble.

Leo nodded approvingly as each moved up steadily. He had to keep reminding himself that these young men were skilled, combat trained and ready for war. They had likely trained in every environment fathomable. He turned and continued to lead the way up the mountainside.

Behind him Mira searched for her next handhold. She raised her hand to grab it, but her reach was a lot shorter than the others. Her fingers grazed the edge of the outcropping she was reaching for and then slipped. She gasped as her other hand slipped as well. A strong hand shot out and gripped her wrist. “I got you.”

She looked up into the red brown eyes and blushed furiously. “Thank you.” He smiled and for a moment she regarded him. He did seem genuinely concerned for her safety, but beneath that was still a competitor edge that seemed to dominate his personality. Beneath them there was a grunt. K-three glared daggers at Eznic. The turtle still had a grip on her wrist and despite her own discomfort she allowed it to linger a few moments longer.

Leo glanced back down his line. “Mira?”

“I’m fine.” She hadn’t said much to her uncle throughout the day. She was still ticked at him for saying whatever he did to K-three. Eznic waited until she had another good grip on the rock face before releasing her.

Leo frowned as whatever had happened, had made K-three close the gap between him and Mira in mere seconds. K-three was now just beneath her, barely an arm length away. He turned back to his climb with a sigh. He knew his niece was angry with him, but it couldn’t be helped. She’d thank him in the long run. She’d be alive in the long run. Just like Amaya would have been alive if he’d left her behind.

Once they reach the top, they pulled off their climbing gear and opened their packs to pull out the mini parachutes. The face of this mountain was sheer enough that they could easily base jump. Eznic approached Mira as she unrolled her parachute. His eyes shot to K-three as he knelt down beside her and offered her his assistance. And although she didn’t need it, she allowed it feeling K-three become increasingly uncomfortable with his rival’s presence so close to her.

K-three finally turned away from them with a groan. Chase watch the scene as well and finally stepped close to his friend. “Dude, what is your deal? She likes you. And I know you like her. So what’s the problem?”

This earned him a glare from his captain. “Stay out of this.” He folded his arms across his chest and glared at the blue sky. Chase and Zan exchanged a look. They knew that look all too well, he was bottling up his frustration. His body was tense with the restraint. _This is what I chose._

He glanced back over his shoulder at Mira. She wasn’t exactly flirting, more like being polite and friendly. She glanced at him and he quickly looked away. If it was true that she could sense what he was feeling, then it meant that she was playing with him or at least to a certain extent she was. He let a small growl escape him. So this would be a battle of wills. He could hold out just as long as she could. He heard her giggle at something Zan had said and he frowned. _Or maybe not._

&*&*&*&*&*&*&*

The next few days were a torture unlike anything K-three had ever experienced. Forcing himself to stand aside as Mira became friendly with the others. It was all he could do to restrain himself, when Eznic would get a little too close for comfort to the object of his desire. And Mira would allow it, making his chest burn with jealousy.

On the sixth day since their arrival, bungee jumping was on the agenda and Leo was once again playing escort. They stood on an abandon railroad trestle looking down into a deep cavern. Mira leaned on the rail frowning as she looked down into the void below. She was a little nervous. Her logical mind was going over all the things that could go wrong. All the other activities they’d done she’d had far more control over the outcome. Here she was completely dependent upon the gear they’d brought.

Nearby everyone else was putting on their harness. There were only two main drop lines and so they’d have to take turns. Prog tried to get in front of Zan and stepped on his harness by accident, making him jerk backwards.

Zan scowled. “Watch it, dude!”

Prog puffed out his chest. “You’re in my way, punk!”

“I’m going before your fat head.” Zan informed him.

Prog turned and shoved him backwards. “I’m not fat!”

Zan stumbled backwards hard, hitting Mira in the process. She screamed as the rusted rail she was holding onto gave and she tumbled forward into the air.

K-three had just secured the drop line to his harness when he saw her fall. “No!” A sound left him like his heart was being crushed as he charged forward and dove off the side of the trestle.

“Mira!” Leo shouted then he gasped. “Chase his line!” Chase grabbed the other end of K-three’s line and dove for the anchor to secure it. Below K-three swooped through the air as Mira tried to slow her descent by spreading out her small body as far as she could. K-three caught one of her arms and swung her around, wrapping her tightly in his embrace.

Chase was within a millimeter of attaching the line to the anchor when it tried to snap out of his hand. “No!” He struggled to keep his footing as it jerked him towards the edge. Leo and Zan were at his side in less than a second, grabbing the line and bracing themselves against the tracks and the main supports. They grunted as the weight on the other end bounced.

“He’s got her!” Eznic announced from the edge.

Prog’s large hands grabbed the rope and together they began to pull their companions to safety. At the other end, Mira was trembling as she clutched at K-three. His arms were like steel and she no longer had a fear of falling as the world slowed around them. Her heart raced as she cracked her eyes open to look at him. He was shaking nearly as bad as she was and his breath came in panicked gasps.

“I can’t do it. I can’t do it.” He mumbled. He was suddenly pressing kisses across her head, shoulders and face, anywhere he could reach. His arms tightened still around her as they dangled hundreds of feet above the ground. “I can’t do it. I can’t do it.”

Mira clenched her eyes shut against the pain he was feeling. It ripped through both of them like a thousand earthquakes – powerful and destructive. Fear, desperation, and love tore their way into her and she inhaled sharply.

And then they were being pulled to safety, a dozen hands grabbing at her and trying to pry them apart. But K-three’s grip only tightened and so they were pulled onto the trestle together. The couple collapsed in a heap on the tracks. The Turtleoid never released his grip, but Mira opened her eyes when she felt a hand touch her head.

She looked up into her uncle’s concerned gaze. “You okay, Mira-chan?”

She gave a shaky nod and shifted her gaze to K-three who was still trembling. “Could we have a minute alone?” Leo nodded and ushered the others to the other end of the trestle.

Mira slipped her hands up to cup his face. “K-three?”

“I can’t do it.” He mumbled again, his eyes still shut tightly.

She stroked his cheek. “K-three, can you hear me? It’s okay. We’re safe.”

Slowly he opened his eyes to stare at her and they glistened in the afternoon sun. The childhood nickname sounded so wrong from her lips. “Kane.”  He whispered softly. “My name is Kane.”

She smiled softly. “Kane.” She liked the sound of that, it seemed to fit him much better. “Kane, what can’t you do?”

He pulled her to him again, burying his face in her neck. “I can’t let you go.” His breath was hot on her skin and she shivered. But his next words nearly made her heart stop beating all together. “I’m afraid I’m in love with you, little flower.”

She couldn’t stop the tears as they began to flow. His emotions poured into her, filling her to the brink. They were as pure as snow and more beautiful than anything she’d ever felt. That’s when she realized what he was feeling was the very same thing she was. A warmth filled her body and she no longer cared what anyone else in the world might think. Logic abandoned. “I love you too.”

His breath hitched and his whole body sagged against hers, as if her softly spoken words had relieved him of some great burden. He turned his head to capture her lips. His own unabashed tears streaking his face. His tongue demanded entry and she gave it eagerly. She felt as if she was falling all over again. The only thing keeping her from crashing were the protective arms wrapped around her. She gripped at his vest with white knuckles. Nothing existed in that moment except him.

When he at last released her, she collapsed against him. The world around her was suddenly silent, peaceful. She marveled at the unfamiliar quiet. Never before had she ever been able to block out the emotions of those surrounding her so completely. But now all she could feel was him. It was like the whole world had disappeared and only they existed. Somewhere in that peaceful silence, she felt him shift to lift her into his arms.

Leo turned his back on the incredibly emotional scene before him. He had once loved like that. He _still_ loved like that. Memories swamped him, and he trembled. The wind swirled around him and whispered into his soul. _Love cannot be denied._ He dropped his face into his hand. That had been what he was trying to do. Trying to protect her from the heartache he felt. But the truth was ten years or ten days, love was worth every minute. The consequences be damned.

Beside him Eznic scowled. K-three had obviously thought he’d won, but he was not going down that easily. He continued to glare as he watched his rival stand, allowing his harness to drop to the tracks as he turned with the girl in his arms. Her eyes were closed but her hands still gripped his black vest.

Zan swallowed hard. It had been his fault she’d fallen. “Is she okay, K-three?”

Leo turned at the question to stare at his niece cradled in the turtle’s arms. For a split second he wanted to take her from him, but the pensive and possessive look in the Turtleoid’s eyes gave him pause. It was a look he’d seen many times over the years in his own brothers’ eyes, it meant she belonged to him and he’d sooner die than let anyone take her from him.

K-three held her a little closer. “Yeah, she’s just exhausted. I think we’re calling it a day. We’ll meet you in the van.” He didn’t wait for a response as he marched past them.

Mira woke sometime later to find herself still cradled in K-three’s arms. _No, not K-three, Kane._ She reminded herself. They were in the van headed home. It was quiet, nothing like it had been in the days before when the boys had teased and bashed each other about their performance during day. She could feel their eyes on her and she turned a little more into his chest.

She could hear Leo on the phone talking with her father. Apparently her mother had freaked out and Leo was trying to settle things down. He glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “She’s fine.” He repeated for the tenth time. “Just a little shaken up. We’re pulling up now.” He hung up as they came to a stop at the back of the garage.

K-three waited until everyone else had climbed out, before letting Mira slip from his arms. The sudden loss of her touch made him ache inside. Leo was waiting for him as he followed her out. The leader extended his hand and K-three took it. Leo’s eyes blazed with conviction. “Thank you for saving her.” He wrapped his other hand around the turtle’s forearm. “For you what you did, you will always have a place here.”

K-three nodded, not sure what to say. It hadn’t even crossed his mind not to dive after her. If he had let her die, he would have been as good as dead himself. There would have been nothing left of him except a hollow shell.

Leo put his hand on his shoulder with a smile. “Come on, let’s get some dinner.”


	9. Confessions

As K-three and Leo entered the garage they found Mira wrapped tightly in her mother’s arms and they in turn wrapped tightly in Donnie’s. The ninja lifted his eyes to the young man and gave an approving nod. Sarah stepped away from her family to wrap her arms around the Turtleoid’s neck. “Thank you.” She sobbed into his shoulder.

He shuddered, his arms coming up to return the hug. Never in a million years would he have thought he would embrace a member of the species that was currently trying to destroy his own. And yet here she was, even smaller and more fragile than Mira, hugging him and thanking him. She stepped back and he cleared his throat before trying to speak. “I’d never let anything happen to her.” He met Mira’s eyes and she smiled at him.

Sarah raised an eyebrow as she felt her daughter’s love for this man pulse through her. She smiled as well as she stepped back, pulling her daughter into her arms again. Donnie hadn’t missed the exchange either and it made his guts twist. Something was happening and for once he didn’t think he could stop it. With a heavy sigh he leaned down to kiss Mira on the head. Oh, how he wished she was still a toddler and he could shelter her from the world in his arms. But there was no denying that with each passing year she had grown into a strong capable young woman. With another sigh he urged the girls towards the elevator. The others had already descended into the lair.

He glanced again at K-three. “Are you all right?”

K-three shrugged. He was a bit sore, but nothing he couldn’t handle. “I’m fine.” And for the first time Donnie smiled at him. As the older turtle turned away, heading for the elevator, K-three paused. Had that been admiration he’d seen in his eyes? Was Mira’s father proud of him? And why did he suddenly desire it nearly as much as he had his own father?

He turned to follow them into the elevator, along with Leo. As they emerged from the car an odd smell met them. They stepped around into the kitchen to find several bubbling hot pizzas lined along the large table. Mikey turned to them from the oven with a fresh one in hand. He felt better being able to do one of his favorite pastimes. He liked feeling productive. When Kala had come and told him what was going on, he had sprung into action. It had been a good while since he had practiced the art of pizza making and the familiar behavior had soothed his nerves.

“Hey guys! I hope you’re hungry because I got two more in the oven.” Mikey grinned like crazy and Sarah chuckled despite her slightly swollen eyes.

The others had already gathered around the table and were pulling slices of unfamiliar indescribable pizza onto their plates. K-three moved forward to sit beside Zan and Mira hurried after him to take the empty chair next to him. He smiled as her small hand wrapped around his under the table.

Sarah sat in the chair beside her and leaned close to whisper in her ear. “A lot happened out there. And I think you and I should have a talk after dinner.” Mira silently nodded her agreement as chatter began to roll around the table.

“So, what are we gonna do tomorrow, bros?” Zan stuffed an olive and chocolate syrup slice into his mouth.

Chase thought that over for a moment. “How about surfing?”

Eznic snorted. “We only have four waterproof hollows though.”

“Well, you could take one of the tents with you and trade out. Only four of you could be in the water at once but that shouldn’t be a problem, should it?” Cat offered.

Chase smiled at her. “Hey, that’s not a half bad idea.”

“I want to go surfing!” Kaz popped up.

Mikey frowned. “I don’t know if that such a good idea. There are a lot of people on the beach this time of year, little man.”

Mira looked down at the metal band around her wrist. She pulled it off and offered it to Mikey. “After today, I think I’ll that this one out.”

Mikey gave her small sad smile. “I understand, dudette.”

K-three pulled off his own band and handed it over as well. “That goes for me too.”

Zan frowned. “You’re not still mad are you, bro?”

K-three shook his head. “I’m not mad. It was an accident, Zan. That’s all it was.”

Raph frowned at Zan. “Yeah, a really stupid one.” This young punk reminded him way too much of Mikey.

“Does this mean I can go surfing?” Kaz asked again.

Mikey frowned but Kala touched his arm. She smiled. “You know, I wouldn’t mind getting out and getting some sun.” Mikey smirked a little. He wouldn’t mind seeing her in a bathing suit again. And so he relented.

“Okay, Kazzey, but you have to pay attention and you have to stay close.”

The youngster cheered. “This is going to be awesome!”

The others laughed and they continued to chat until dinner was done. Then Sarah took Mira by the hand and pulled her off to her bedroom. Mira sat on the side of her bed, wondering if she were in trouble because she wasn’t sensing those sort of emotions from her mother. She was more concerned than anything else.

Sarah paced for a moment and then turned to the young turtle. “Mira, what happened out there?”

Mira frowned. “Well, Zan bumped me and the rail I was holding onto came loose and I fell. K-three saved me.”

Sarah made a face. She could sense there was more to the story. “I know that sweetheart. I felt your fear and your relief. But then you…” She paused, searching for the right words. “Seemed to disappear.” She settled on the side of the bed and took Mira’s hands. “What happened after that?”

Mira blushed. This had to be one of the more embarrassing conversations she’d had with her mother. “Uh, well, after we were pulled to safety, he told me he loved me and he kissed me. And I told him I loved him too.”

Sarah nodded. She had felt that as well. “And…?”

Mira raised a hand to her lips absently, remembering the kiss. “When he kissed me, it was like the whole world just disappeared and there was only me and him.” Her eyes lit up a bit. “It was so amazing, so quiet, so peaceful.” She lifted her eyes to her mother’s and Sarah’s breath caught. She’d seen that look in the mirror a million times. “Is that how you feel with Dad? Like he’s filling you up from the tips of your toes to the top of your head and wrapping you up in warm blanket.”

Sarah nodded, unshed tears glistened in her eyes. That was exactly how it felt. She looked away, worry filling her heart.

Mira frowned. “What is it?”

Sarah wrapped her arms around her and pulled her head down to rest on her shoulder. She stroked her cheek tenderly. “I don’t know. It might be nothing. But I want you to know, no matter what, I am so very happy that you have found someone that loves you and that you love as well. It has been my heart’s deepest desire that you would find happiness.”

Mira hugged her mother, relaxing against her small soft frame. “Thanks, Mom.”

While the girls chatted Donnie stood in the back of the living room watching K-three. The Turtleoid seemed different, lighter somehow and in a far better mood than he had been in the past few days. Something had definitely happened. With a resigned sigh he approached the group.

“K-three, I’d like to talk to you.”

The younger turtle shifted a little nervously. This was the first time that Donnie had actually called him out. For most of his stay the ninja had simply given him dirty looks. Even when he had led their rafting trip, Don had said little to him. Sensing the seriousness of his tone, he stood. He followed him quietly to the sewer entrance where he keyed in the code and the door opened. Once they’d stepped through, Don pressed a button shutting it behind them.

The elder turtle didn’t speak as they walked at a steady pace through the tunnels. With all the twists and turns, K-three was lost within the first ten minutes. But still he followed, quietly waiting. Until Donnie came to a stop. He hadn’t picked any particular destination, he’d only wanted to put some distance between them and the lair, and Mira.

Donnie leaned against the tunnel wall and regarded the young man. Across from him, K-three waited patiently, growing more nervous by the minute. Would Mira still love him, if her father rejected him? Would she be willing to go against his wishes? Somehow in the back of his mind, he doubted it. He’d seen the family interact. Their bond was too strong. And even if made her unhappy, she might not be willing to go against them.

He leaned against the opposite wall with a heavy sigh. They stayed this way for what felt like an eternity, measuring and judging one another. Until at last Donnie spoke. “What do you intend to do?”

 K-three rubbed his hands on his jeans. He meant what was he going to do when it was time to leave. “I don’t know.”

“She nearly died today. Why should I trust you to take care of her?”

K-three shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“Would she be safe on Shellri-La?”

“I don’t know.”

Donnie frowned, his brown eyes piercing into the turtle. “What do you know?”

K-three clenched his eyes shut against the sharp gaze. “I know that she makes me feel whole. I know that I’d give my life to spare her one ounce of pain. I know I feel lost when she’s not near me. I know that if she asked me, I’d conquer the universe for her. I know that when she leaves my sight, I can do nothing but think about her until I lay eyes on her again.” He opened his golden eyes to meet the deep brown ones. “And I know that I love her more than my own life.”

Donnie had watched him during his speech, observing for any sign that he might be lying. He’d watched for a rising pulse or sweat or the swipe of a hand across his face. But K-three had not moved, his breathing steady and his jaw firm. He’d meant every word.

His gaze finally softened and he sighed. K-three reminded him of himself. There was no doubt the young man loved his daughter. But to what ends? By all accounts, he’d be leaving in a few days. What then? If he left her behind, Mira would be crushed. If he took her with him, her life would be in danger.

“You understand, she’s still young? I would never approve her running off with you.”

K-three nodded. “I don’t want to take her away. Besides, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I took her home and she was hurt or worse.”

“Then you intend to leave her behind?”

K-three swallowed and gave a shaky nod. “It’s the only option I have right now.” He glanced back the way they’d come. “I have…. responsibilities.”

There was another option, but Don hesitated to say it. _Perhaps a little space wouldn’t be so bad for them. And if it is true love, nothing will keep him from returning to her_. He turned and started for home. K-three watched him for a moment and then hurried after, afraid of getting lost in the labyrinth of tunnels.

&*&*&*&*&*&

“Bonded?” Donnie watched Sarah pace back and forth in front of their bed. “Are you sure?”

Sarah shook her head. “No, I’m not. I can’t see how she could ever fully bond since she’s not a full Mazar.”

“But you think she has?” Donnie rubbed his forehead, the signs of stress headache coming on.

Sarah hugged herself, trying desperately to keep her worry under control. “I don’t know, maybe it’s a partial bond of some kind. All I know is that she was able to completely block me out, and she’s never been able to do that before.”

Dread filled Donnie’s heart. “But if she did bond with him and he leaves….”

Sarah nodded, tears pooling in her eyes. “She could get sick. She could even die.”

He caught her hand and pulled her to him where he sat on the bedside. “We won’t let that happen.” He sighed. “And I’m not so sure it would. The amount of your DNA was less than a quarter compared to mine.”

Sarah shook her head still not convinced. “But we’ve already seen her pick up several of my traits. She could easily have picked up on that one as well.”

Donnie let out a heavy breath, trying his best to remain calm. “Maybe, but we won’t know until they leave. And at the moment that is still his plan. Though I think he’d rather not.”

Sarah sighed as she slipped into his lap, relishing his powerful arms around her. “He loves her then?”

“Yes, very much.” He breathed into her hair.

“I thought so.” She smiled. “She loves him too.”

He buried his nose in her hair. “Then we must hope he makes the right choice.”

*&*&*&*&*&*&*

Mira yawned, staring at the ceiling. She could still feel K-three inside her, his presence nearly blocking out everyone else. She smiled, remembering how he’d cupped her cheek telling her goodnight. She could still feel the smoothness of his palm, a hand not used to close combat weapons. She had no doubt he could use them if he wanted to, but he was likely more used to some sort of laser rifle. She looked at her own hands. They were callused from years of training and more recently combat itself. She frowned at them. She knew their rough texture. She’d felt it often enough on her own skin. She wondered if K-three would mind her hands not being as soft and delicate as her mother’s.

She sighed. Her mother was worried about something, of that she was certain. But she didn’t know what. And now her father seemed concerned as well. But they weren’t telling her anything. She groaned. Sometimes they still treated her too much like a child. In many cultures, including the Mazar, she would have been married off by now and maybe even starting a family of her own.

She pushed herself up and headed for the kitchen for a drink of water. She stopped beside the couch to look down the short hall at the sleeping form of K-three just inside the dojo door. A part of her wanted to go crawl under the blanket with him, drink in his comforting scent and revel in his strong embrace. She glanced to her right, where her uncle’s door stood ajar. She knew he listened for any sign of his young unhappiness. She suppressed a sigh and turned towards the darkened kitchen.

_All I came for was glass of water, better not push my luck. I think maybe Dad is coming around._

She flipped on the light and crossed the room to the battered cupboards, pulling out an equally battered cup. She drew some water and drank, allowing the cool liquid to relax her. Rinsing the cup, she set it aside and turned to leave.

She gasped. Standing right behind her was Eznic. He grinned. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“I’m sorry if I woke you.” She made to move away from the sink but he blocked her path. She frowned. “What are you doing?”

“I just want to talk.”

She bit her lip. “Talk? About what?”

He grasped her wrist in an iron grip. “About us.”


	10. Our Own

“Us? What us?” Mira tried to pull her hand away, but Eznic had learned he had to use a little more force with her than the typical female.

His grip remained while his face reflected shock. His emotions, however, showed nothing of the sort. “Oh, I thought we had something special going. You didn’t seem to mind all the attention I’ve been giving you the past few days.”

And there was the flaw in her big plan to make K-three realize his feeling for her. She’d inadvertently let Eznic get a little too close. Sirens went off in her head and she grabbed at his wrist with her free hand, trying to throw him. But he seemed to be prepared for this, planting his feet and grabbing her other wrist. She fought him, but he was just too strong. He advanced on her, pinning her against the counter. “Now, now. Let’s play nice.”

He leaned towards her and she leaned as far back as possible with her shell. Her training suddenly took over and she slammed her foot into his knee. He stumbled back with a snarl. She made a dash for the door, but he caught her and pinned her against the wall by her throat. “Don’t make a noise.” He hissed in her ear. Mira struggled for air, the edges of her vision going dark.

What he didn’t realize was she’d already sounded the alarm. There was a roar and someone slammed into the side of Eznic. Mira coughed and gasped for air as his hand broke away. There was cursing and shouting around her, and the crash of tables and chairs. She regained her focus to find her father and K-three exchanging blows with Eznic. The Turtleoid simply had no chance as the ninja and enraged turtle pummeled him with blow after blow.

Eznic stumbled away from them, wiping at the blood dripping from his mouth. He glanced in her direction and this only sent K-three further over the edge. “How dare you touch her! Don’t even look at her!” The words were nearly incoherent beneath the snarls and growls.

Beside him Donnie’s eyes were nearly black with fury as he darted forward and slammed a fist into the younger turtle’s stomach, making him double over. Eznic was lucky the weapons were kept in the dojo, on the other side of the kitchen wall, otherwise he might not have lived long enough to take the punishment Don wanted to deal him. Sarah had woken him with a shout and he’d ran to kitchen just in time to see K-three tackle Eznic. The sickeningly reddening flesh of his daughter’s throat had nearly drove him mad.

In the doorway stood Zan, Chase, and Prog gaping at the scene before them. Prog considered intervening, but one look at Mira and he stopped cold. Sarah pushed her way through them and darted to her daughter’s side. She wrapped her arms protectively around her and examined the injured flesh of her neck.

By now the ruckus had drawn the other three brothers into the room. “What’s going on?” Leo demanded.

“Get out!” Donnie’s eyes flared with rage. “Get out of our home! Now!” Beside him K-three was growling so loud that they barely heard Sarah’s response.

“He attacked Mira.”

The room resonated with another half dozen growls. And Eznic found himself suddenly way outnumbered. He started to back away again but K-three’s fist caught him, spinning him around like a top. He slammed into the far wall and then crumpled to the floor. The two turtles advanced on him despite his unconscious state. Their intentions all too clear.

Mira’s sharp cry made them stop. “No!” She knew if she allowed this to go any further, they’d kill the young Turtleoid. And she couldn’t have that. He didn’t deserve it. She’d been the one to draw his attention, however unintentionally it might have been done. She dashed across the room and threw herself into K-three’s arms. “Don’t kill him!” He crushed her to him, rubbing his cheek against her head. A low hum came from deep inside his chest, a noise meant to soothe, and she melted against him.

Donnie blinked at the noise. It was something they had never developed, perhaps because of their own mixed heritage it had been lost along the way. But apparently it had not been lost in the pure turtle linage of the Turtleoids. He watched in awe as Mira’s eyes drifted to half-mast, all the adrenaline and fight gone from her.

Leo, Raph and Mikey watched their brother for any sign that he disliked what was happening, but all he did was give a small smile. Sarah crossed the room to his side and he wrapped an arm around her waist. “What should we do with him?”

Donnie narrowed his eyes at the limp form on the ground. He could think of a lot of things, none of them pleasant. K-three stopped his soothing and looked down at Eznic. He sighed. “I suppose we should take him back to Shellri-La.”

Mira’s head popped up, panic in her eyes. “No! You can’t leave, not yet.”

Pain flickered in his features. He pulled her to him again, starting the soothing hum once more. Donnie and Sarah exchanged a worried look. Things were not looking good for their daughter.

Prog stepped forward. “You don’t have to leave. I’ll take him home.”

K-three nodded. “Go with him to their ship, commander. Make sure the coordinates for this planet are wiped from his computer before they launch.” Chase gave a sharp nod of acknowledgement.

Raph glared at Eznic. “I think I’ll join you. You’ll need a ride anyways.”

Somewhere in the background, Shinta was crying. Sarah glanced at Mira, she was very safe wrapped in K-three’s arms. She knew she’d be cared for. She glanced up at Donnie and he nodded. She turned and hurried through the others to collect him from Kala, who was struggling to keep him calm. Kaz and Yoshi stood nearby staring at the scene with wide eyes.

Prog lifted Eznic’s unconscious body over his shoulder with little effort and followed Chase and Raph from the kitchen. Donnie moved close to Mira and stroked a hand down her cheek. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

She gave a small nod, her hand coming up to touch the tender flesh of her neck. “Just a little sore.” K-three gave another small growl at the information, and Donnie’s hand came up to squeeze his shoulder.

He turned away from the couple to look at his brother. “Leo, I need to talk to you.” The leader nodded and they headed for his bedroom.

Cat looked around the kitchen at the destruction. The large custom made table had been broken in half during the scuffle and several chairs had been crushed. She glanced at Mikey and Zan. “Come on, guys. Let’s get this cleaned up.” The two turtles nodded.

As Mikey moved forward, he touched Mira’s shell and she gave him a weak smile. He exchanged a look with K-three. “Great save, bro.”

K-three smiled a little at the compliment. He looked down at Mira.  “Come on, little flower.” He turned her towards the living room, where they sat on the couch. Mira curled into his side and he began the soft hum again while stroking her arm and shell.

Sarah watched them from where she paced with Shinta on her shoulder, her hands almost mimicking his as she comforted the tot. Worry still ate at her heart but she pushed it away in favor of the love flowing from her daughter. She sighed, rocking Shinta a little. The tot’s cries had turned to small hiccups and he was starting to fall asleep again.

Kaz scowled at the elevator door, where Eznic had been carried out. His eyes flared with anger, a small growl escaping him. Kala blinked at him in surprise. She laid her hands on his shoulders. “It’s okay, Kaz.”

“He tried to hurt Mira.” He growled.

She nodded. “Yes, but K-three stopped him.”

Kaz moved around the couch to stop in front of K-three. The Turtleoid opened his eyes to look at the elven-year-old. Kaz put his palms together and bowed. “Thank you.”

K-three offered a small smile, but didn’t answer as Mira had fallen asleep against him. Her head rested on his plastron while his arm was draped protectively around her. One of his large hands held one her small ones.

Kaz smiled at them. “Are you her boyfriend now?”

Both Sarah and Kala stopped moving, their attention fixed on the male. K-three gave a small chuckle. “Yeah, I guess I am.”

Kaz’s smile broadened. “Does that mean you’re going to stay?”

K-three looked away, his grip tightening on Mira. “I want to, but I don’t think I can.”

Yoshi ran around to stand beside Kaz. “Why not?” His little green eyes narrowed. “If you love her, you should stay.”

K-three sighed, his hand coming up to caress Mira’s cheek. “It’s complicated, kid. I’ve got responsibilities. People that depend on me.”

The little turtle’s hot-headed heritage came blazing to the surface. “But what about Mira!” In his eight-year-old eyes the world was still black and white, right and wrong. And leaving someone you said you loved was definitely wrong.

“Yoshi!” Sarah hissed, trying not to wake Shinta. When he looked her way, she waived him to her. She squeezed his small shoulder. “It’s time for bed.” She guided him into the room and laid Shinta on his little bed.

As she urged Yoshi to lay down in his own bed, he frowned at her. “But if he leaves, Mira will be sad.”

“I know.” She said softly. “But it’s his decision, not ours.”

“But-“

She stroked his round head. “We must have faith that things will work out as they should.” She leaned forward and kissed the top of his head. “Now, get some sleep.”

In the next room, Leo stared at Donnie liked he’d grown an extra head. “You can’t be serious. You and Sarah have said all along that this wasn’t possible.”

Donnie shook his head. “We’re not a hundred percent certain, but you saw them just now. It’s getting hard to deny.”

Leo gave a solemn nod. “Yeah, I did.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “What if it’s not a true bond? What if it’s more like what happened when we first met Sarah, when we were just kids?”

“You mean like the preadolescent bond?” Donnie thought that over for a moment. “Well, maybe. If it is, it won’t be as strong as a true bond. It won’t put her life in danger anyways.”

“So, what do you plan on doing about it?”

Donnie frowned. “Nothing.”

“Nothing?” Leo was astonished, usually his brother would have come up with something to keep his daughter out of danger.

“It’s not our place to demand he stay, so it’ll have to be up to him. I just thought you ought to know what was going on.”

Leo frowned. “I’m not so sure that’s a good plan.”

Donnie sighed. “It’s the only one we have.”

&*&*&*&*&*&*

Prog dumped Eznic on one of the cots near the back of the ship and the turtle gave a grunt. He opened his eyes and rubbed his head as the large turtle left. “Man, what happened?”

Raph growled, his eyes sharp. “You put your hands on the wrong girl.”

Eznic snorted as he sat up. “She didn’t seem to mind a few days ago.”

Raph’s growl escalated. “You listen to me, ya piece of scum. I’ve been watchin’ you and you leave a bad taste in my mouth. I have half a mind to finish what my brother and K-three started.”

Eznic glared back. “And why didn’t they finish me off? Too spineless?”

Raph took a heavy step forward. “You have Mira to thank for that.”

Eznic had the audacity to smirk. “She must like it rough.”

Raph’s fist hit him square in the jaw, snapping his head back into the wall behind the cot. He fell back into unconsciousness without a single sound. Raph rubbed his knuckles with a glint in his eye. “I’ve been wantin’ to do that all week.” He turned and headed back to the front, where Chase and Prog sat at the controls.

Prog glanced over his shoulder at him. “I heard a noise. Is everything alright?”

Raph grinned wickedly. “Fine, I just gave him something to help him sleep.”

Prog lifted an eye ridge, but chose not to pursue the topic. Chase turned around in his chair. “Memory banks have been wiped. There won’t be any record of this planet ever being visited. He won’t be able to find his way back or at least not easily.”

Prog sighed. “Tell your family I’m sorry for the trouble.”

Raph frowned. “Hey, man. This ain’t your fault.”

Prog stood with a little shake of his head. “I knew how he was. I should have insisted we leave earlier.”

Chase stood. “You’re not a half bad guy, Prog.” He offered him his hand and Prog took it. “We should hang when we get back, but you’ll have to lose that bag of trash first.” He shot a thumb in Eznic’s direction.

Prog smiled. “That sounds like a plan.”

They stepped outside and waited as the invisible ship rose, swirling dust around them, and shot into the sky. Both Raph and Chase let out a heavy breath of relief as their uninvited and sorely unwanted guest left.

&*&*&*&*&*&*

K-three lifted Mira into his arms and walked down the hall to her bedroom. He laid her softly in her bed and covered her with her blanket. He took in a deep breath. Her room was soaked with her scent. Every surface seemed to be covered in it. She gave a soft whimper as he moved away and he paused to watch her from the doorway.

 _What was that? I’ve never felt anything like it before. It was like she screamed my name inside my head._ He shuddered, recalling the terror that had swept over him. He couldn’t sense her now, but there for a moment it was like she was inside him, like they were one being. He shook his head as he closed the door. _That’s stupid. She couldn’t be inside me. I’m not an empath, she is._

He turned to go back to his pallet in the dojo, but his feet wouldn’t move. Perhaps it was fear still lingering inside him. It didn’t matter if it was his or hers, but it wouldn’t let him move. He leaned against the wall beside her door and slid down it to sit. He closed his eyes with a resigned sigh. Mira’s scent wafted up to him from the crack in the door and he felt his body relax. It was the first truly restful sleep he’d had since his arrival.

A little while later Donnie found him there. He stood in the hall watching K-three sleep just outside his daughter’s door. A solitary sentry guarding her in case of trouble, despite the fact that the danger had now passed. Raph stopped beside him as he came down the hall. He smirked. “You know, bro, he wouldn’t make a bad addition to the family. He can hold his own in fight.”

Donnie frowned as he folded his arms. “He says he’s leaving.”

Raph tilted his head, watching the young man. “Don’t look like he’s goin’ anywhere to me.”

“Let’s hope not.” Cat slipped up beside him and took his hand. “Come on, it’s been a long night.” K-three shifted a little as the couple entered the door across from him, but he didn’t wake.

“You were right. He loves her a lot.” Donnie looked down into Sarah’s soft brown eyes as she touched his arm. She could feel him fighting down the desire to hope. She kissed his cheek. “Go on to bed, love. I’ll be right there.” He nodded, stepping into their bedroom. She made her way quietly back to the dojo and picked up K-three’s blanket. Everyone else had finally settled back to bed. Slipping down the hall, she laid the blanket across her daughter’s guard. She smiled. “Sleep well, sweetheart.”


	11. To Be Young

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies, I forgot to update here when I put the last chapter on ffnet. So, you guys are going to get two today. Also, I'm going to try to update the last chapter before Valentine's day, if I can find the time to finish it. I think it would be very fitting to end this fic that day.

“I want to go too!” Yoshi stomped his foot.

“No, Yoshi. Not this time. Maybe we can take you later.” Raph told him.

Yoshi’s jaw trembled. “That’s not fair! Kaz is going!”

“Yoshi…” Raph warned and the youngster backed off a bit. His eyes still held an angry defiance though.

Cat leaned over Raph’s shoulder where he sat on the couch. “How about we go to the pond tomorrow? You like the pound.”

Yoshi scowled. “That’s not the same thing. I want to go surfing like Kaz.”

Raph frowned. “Well, you ain’t always gonna get what you want.” Yoshi huffed and stomped off into his bedroom. Raph let out a heavy frustrated sigh.

Cat kissed her spouse on the cheek. “He’ll get over it.”

Behind her, Mikey came from the kitchen with a cooler packed with drinks and snacks. He set it beside the elevator. “We’re set to go. You sure you two don’t want to come?”

Mira shook her head where she sat beside K-three, her feet tucked under her. “No, I just don’t feel up to it.” Beside the fact they’d had a rough night, she wasn’t a big fan of crowds. They tended to overwhelm her senses, too many emotions hitting her all at once.

K-three watched her, his posture relaxed. He gave Mikey a quick apologetic smile. “Nah, it was a long night.”

Mikey shrugged. “It’s cool, bro. I get it.”

Zan smacked K-three on the shoulder as he came out of the dojo. “You’re going to miss some awesome curls, dude.” K-three frowned at him and Zan squatted down behind the couch to speak in a mock whisper to Mira. “Hey, see if you can get this sourpuss to cheer up while we’re gone.” Mira pressed her hand to her mouth with a giggle and K-three smiled a little. Zan grinned. “Great start!” This only made her giggles escalate.

Chase grabbed the back of Zan’s hoody to pull him towards the door. “Come on, knucklehead.” He winked at K-three as he shoved their friend into the elevator.

Mira continued to snicker as Kala and Kaz came down the hall. Kala had on a white cap that covered her pointed ears. Otherwise she looked like any normal human, dressed in a tank and shorts that covered her bathing suit. Kaz fiddled with the metal bracelet. It was too large for him and kept falling off.

K-three spotted this and the potential danger of him losing it. “Here, kid, let me fix that.” Kaz came around the couch and K-three pressed one of the buttons. The band synched around the youngster’s wrist, securing it in place.

Kaz smiled. “Thanks.”

“Come on, Kaz. Let’s go.” Mikey called from the elevator and the boy hurried to him.

Cat sighed as the lift left. “I suppose I should get to work. I’ve got a ton to do.”

Raph turned to look at her with a frown. “I wish I could help more.”

“You can.” Donnie appeared in the hall and tossed him something.

Raph caught it and examined the box like device. It was one of Don’s holo-projectors. “What’s this for?”

“We’ve got them now, so why not use them. Now you can go upstairs and if a customer shows up just turn it on until they leave.”

Raph grinned. “Donnie, that’s a great idea. What do you say, darlin’? Mind me hangin’ around?”

Cat laughed. “Mind? It would make my day, tough guy.”

Raph’s grin widened as he hopped over the back of the couch. Then he paused and glanced at his son’s room. “What about Yoshi?”

Donnie chuckled. “We’ll keep an eye on him.”

As Raph and Cat left, there was the sound of something breaking in the kitchen. Donnie frowned as he felt his mate’s frustration and exhaustion sweep over him. He glanced at the couple on the couch and decided there was still a decent amount of personal space between them and headed into the kitchen. His frown deepened as he watched his wife sweep up the broken porcelain. He sighed as he crossed the room. “What happened?”

She shook her head in dismay. “It was an accident.” She gave him a weak smile. “But I’m afraid we’re running out of mugs now.” He smiled slightly at her attempt at humor. But beneath her strong exterior, he could feel the tiredness in her body.

Shinta started to climb out of the chair where she’d put him. She put her hand up. “No, no, sweetie stay there until I’ve got this cleaned up.” The tot made a face but did as he was told.

Leo poked his head around the corner. “Anything wrong? I heard something break.”

Sarah sighed. “No, it’s just another victim of my clumsiness.” She turned away to finish sweeping.

Don nodded at Sarah and then at Shinta and Leo understood. He moved to the chair and picked up his son. “Hey, why don’t you come with me to the dojo for a little while?”

“Okay.” Shinta grinned and let his father carry him out.

Donnie turned back to his wife and took the broom from her. She started to protest, but he pressed a finger to her lips to silence her. “Why don’t you go lie down, love?”

She shook her head. “There’s too much to do.”

“It can wait. No one’s here. I think a nap would make you feel better.”

She shook her head again. “I don’t need a nap.”

He frowned at her. She couldn’t fool him. He knew she was exhausted but fighting it with everything she had. He changed tactics. “Well, I do and I sleep better when you’re with me.”

She relented with a sigh. “Okay, but-“

“I will finish this. You go lie down.” He kissed her brow and he could feel her resistance completely disappear.

“Alright.” She gave a small yawn and placed a kiss on his cheek before heading for their room.

K-three watched Mira’s mother cross the living room. “Is she okay?”

Mira frowned. “She’s been under a lot of stress since my aunt died. She does most of the cooking and cleaning and watches the little ones. And she’s sort of our resident teacher. So she’s got a lot to handle. Aunt Kala and I try to help but it’s a lot of work, especially with Shinta up and running around.” She smiled a little. “He’s starting to get into everything now.”

K-three smiled. “Sounds like this is normally a pretty busy place.”

Donnie came from the kitchen, his task done. “Mira, would you help Leo keep an eye on Yoshi and Shinta?” She nodded and he continued down the hall to his room. Sarah was sitting on the bedside, pulling off her shoes. He removed his gear and pulled her to him. “You try to do too much, love.”

She snuggled into him. “So do you.”

He chuckled. “I guess that’s a trait we share.”

*&*&*&*&*&*

Kaz peered out the tinted windows of the van as they pulled up along the beach. “This is going to be so cool!”

Mikey turned off the van and turned to him. “Kaz is really important that you keep your holo on. Do you remember what happened when you were little?”

Kaz frowned. “Yes.” He remembered all too well. The encounter with the human boys had left him with a definitely slanted view of humans. He was pretty sure that it had affect Mira as well. That was probably why he’d never seen her show even the slightest interest in human boys.

Mikey sighed and pressed his band to trigger his human image. Kala frowned. And he made a face. “What? Do I look awful?”

She shook her head. His human image was blonde and muscular with tanned skin. As humans go he was handsome, but she didn’t like it that much. “No, I just prefer my turtle.”

He grinned. “I’m still me, babe.”

“I know.” She gave him a lopsided smile and stroked his arm. She could still feel his leathery skin beneath the projection. She glanced over her shoulder at Kaz. “Try not to let anyone touch you, honey. They’ll be able to tell there is something different about you.”

He nodded. “Okay. Can we go now?”

Mikey chuckled. “Alright, let’s go.” By the time he’d climbed out and got to the back door, it was open and Zan had picked up the large cooler.

“I got it, pops.” He and Chase started for the beach.

Mikey frowned and gave an exasperated sigh. Kala came and wrapped her arm through his. “Don’t mind him. He’s just teasing you. Now let’s go have some fun.” She pulled off her top and shorts to reveal the orange and white stripped bikini.

Mikey’s eyes bulged and his pulse raced. “Gosh, babe, where you been hiding this?” He ran his fingers under one of her straps.

She shivered and grinned. “It’s new. Cat and I went shopping the other day. I take it you like it.” She did a little twirl and he felt his body tense.

He pulled her to him. “Like is an understatement.” He kissed her deeply. She closed her eyes, drowning in the familiar feel of his large lips and warm embrace.

Kaz made a face of disgust. “Uh, okay. That looks totally weird.” It looked like his mother was kissing a stranger, though he knew that wasn’t the case.

Kala turned to look at the little blonde haired boy standing in the back of the van. It was just too odd seeing her spouse and child like this. “How long are these bands supposed to last?”

“K-three said six hours.” Mikey advised.

Kala sighed. “Good. I don’t know if I could handle you guys like this for too much longer.”

Mikey chuckled and gathered his and Kaz’s boards under one arm. “Come on.” Kala and Kaz followed as he led the way over the duns. As they came into sight of the beach, several pairs of eyes turned in their direction. For a brief second, he wondered if there was something wrong with their holos. Then he realized they weren’t focused on him or Kaz, but on Kala. Her body was still as slim and toned as ever, and it seemed to be drawing quite a bit of the male attention on the beach. Mikey wrapped a possessive arm around her, pulling her against his side as they started down the path.

“There’s Chase and Zan.” Kaz pointed to a spot the two Turtleoids had picked that was slightly away from everyone else. The youngster hurried ahead of them as Zan put down the cooler and Chase set down Kala’s large bag that held all their towels. The two picked up their boards and took off before the others could get settled.

“Hey, wait for me!” Kaz called after them, but it was too late. They were too far away and the sound of the ocean drowned out his voice. He pouted a little.

Mikey chuckled. “It’s okay, Kazzey. We’re going too. Let’s get your mom settled first.” He looked down at his spouse, who was already spreading out one of the towels in the sand. “You gonna be okay here by yourself?”

She smiled at him as she settled down on the towel. “I’ll be fine. You two go have some fun.” She watched them wade into the water and begin to paddle out to the break. It made her happy to know that they got to feel a little normal for a while. This was a rare gift they’d been given, the ability to move among humans without fear of being shunned or called names or inciting a panic. She wasn’t sure if they’d ever get a chance like this again as the bands belonged to the Turtleoids and they would be leaving soon. The thought of them leaving made her heart ache for her niece. Mira had grown so attached to K-three and she hoped their sudden separation wouldn’t hurt her too bad.

She smiled as she watched her hunky turtle disguised as a human teach their son to surf. Kaz picked it up quickly, probably due to years of skateboarding and, of course, ninja training. It wasn’t long before he was handling the waves like a pro. Mikey stayed close though, keeping him in sight at all times. Every once in a while the boy would take a tumble off his board but within seconds he was back to the surface and climbing right back on.

After a while, Kala stretched out on the towel and closed her eyes. The sun felt so good. It had been a while since they’d been up to the pond or even the farmhouse. It was beginning to feel like ages since she’d felt the warm rays on her skin. She loved Mikey and their son and the rest of the family, and she would do anything for them. But living underground certainly had its draw backs and the lack of sunlight was definitely one of them. She sighed, allowing the sunshine to caress her pale skin and soon she was asleep.

About an hour and a half later, she woke when something blocked the warmth that was relaxing her so completely. “Hey, dudette.”

She opened her eyes and blinked at the shadow above her. She didn’t recognize the guy and he was certainly not one of her companions. She adjusted her cap a little, making sure her ears were covered and yawned. “Can I help you with something?”

The young man flashed her a grin. “I’ve been watching you. I thought maybe you’d like to come join me and my friends for a drink.”

Kala couldn’t help the laugh. “No way.”

The man frowned. “Why not?”

A growl came from behind him. “Because she’s my wife.” The guy turned to look into angry blue eyes. “Now beat it.” Mikey snarled. The man hurried away from the burly turtle turned human surfer.

Chase gave a chuckle as he plopped into the sand beside the cooler and pulled out a soda. “Hey, man, you should take it as a compliment.”

Mikey snorted. “I know my wife’s hot. I don’t need some stupid human to tell me that.”

Kala giggled as he sat down beside her. Zan and Kaz settled down as well. They drank and snacked for a while before heading back into the water. This time Kala joined them and the young family played in the waves near the shore for a while. That is until Kaz decided he wanted to go back out for another round of surfing.

It was getting late when Mikey glanced at the power indicator on his band. It was starting to get low. They’d have to leave soon. He called to his son, who was sitting on his board as they floated near the break. “You ready to go home, Kazzey?”

Kaz frowned. “Can we do one more?”

Mikey smiled. “Sure.” They still had a bit of time left.

The two waited until a good wave started, then both hopped up to catch it. Kaz was feeling pretty confident by now and so he tried to do some of the tricks he’d seen Chase and Zan do. As he tried to do a hand stand, the board slipped away and he went under. This didn’t bother him in the least and he kicked his feet to resurface.

Mikey watched Kaz go under and just as he’d done the last several times, his little head popped back out of the water within seconds. He didn’t have time to react as he saw Kaz’s board sweep up behind him. It struck him hard in the back of the head. “Kaz!”

The youngster gave a sharp gasp and went under. _No! He’s just a baby!_ Mikey dove off his board and into the dark waters. It took a moment to find his son beneath the waves, but soon he was swimming them back to the surface. “Kaz! Are you okay?” They were rocked violently by the waves as Mikey tried to get his child to respond. His son was too young to die, he had his whole life ahead him. A long life too. Mikey suddenly felt way too young to deal with the death of his child or even the prospect of death.

Kaz tried to take a breath, coughing and wheezing. He clung to his father. His face scrunched in pain and fear. Mikey let out a heavy breath of relief. He was alive and breathing at least. “Hold on, Kaz.” His son’s hands tightened around him as Mikey started for shore. At last he fell to his knees in the sand, cradling Kaz in his lap despite the boy’s size.

His pulse raced, his body filled with an adrenaline rush he hadn’t felt in years. Kaz continued to coughed. “I’m okay, Dad.” Mikey felt the tears well in his eyes. He hugged the little turtle tighter. He’d nearly lost him, and over something as stupid as surfing. He felt his heart clenched painfully.

Kala was suddenly beside them, babbling hysterically. Her hands searching her child’s body for injuries. Behind her Zan and Chase stood, their faces reflecting shock and concern. It felt like they stayed there for an eternity as Mikey listened to his child’s breathing level out. Kala frowned at the frantic look in her spouse’s eyes. “Are you alright, Mikey? How do you feel?”

Tears slipped from his eyes as he met her gaze. “Young, way too young.”


	12. Sounds of Joy

Leo tried to focus on the kata he was practicing, but it was very difficult with Shinta in the room. The tot roamed the dojo with curiosity. A little too much curiosity as far as Leo was concerned. He’d already stopped him from getting into the weapons, caught him before he could knock the weight bar on top of himself, and had cleaned up the hamper with the dirty towels he’d pulled over while trying to look inside. And now he was currently playing with one of the punching bags that was laying on the floor. This didn’t overly concern Leo, except that the bag still had the large metal hook on its top.

He sighed, moving fluidly through the kata to finish it off. He glanced towards the door. Sarah had seemed tired and he didn’t have to wonder why. She was great with Shinta, but she was no Amaya. He appreciated his sister-in-law more than he could ever express in words. She now held the role of not one woman but two, and it was easy to see she had struggled the past two years. He had struggled as well. As his son’s primary care giver he had learned to do many things – bathing, feeding, changing, and how to function on less than three hours of sleep.

He smiled a little at the memory of when he was so tiny. He didn’t begrudge his son any of those moments. He’d do them over again a thousand times, if it meant his son’s happiness. But he’d also realized what a gap his wife had left. Sarah had graciously taken up as much of the slack as she could. But Shinta wasn’t her child any more than Mira was his. She didn’t deserve to have start over with an infant when her child was nearly grown.

He chuckled as Shinta tried to roll the heavy bag across the dojo floor. He decided to give up his solo training for the day. He scooped up the tot and Shinta smiled at him, his blue-gray eyes sparkling. “I’m hungry, Daddy.”

Leo smiled back. “Well, let’s go see what we can find.” As he entered the living room, he was surprised to find Mira and K-three alone. He looked around. “Hey, where’d everybody go?”

K-three glanced over his shoulder at him. “Raphael went upstairs with Cat.”

“And I think Dad forced Mom to lay down.” Mira continued.

Leo frowned a little and then shrugged. “I was going to get Shinta something to eat. Do you guys want anything?”

Yoshi poked his head out of his room. He’d already forgotten why he was mad. “I do.”

Mira glanced at the boy. She knew how difficult it could be to get him to eat. Yoshi was very picky. “I’ll come help.” She got up and followed Leo and Yoshi into the kitchen.

K-three also followed. He settled into a chair and watched Mira pull some items from the fridge. They’d gotten the privilege of watching her and the others train this morning. It had been fascinating to see her move with such powerful grace and skill. When he’d asked her later why they used such primitive weapons, she’d simply said that a ninja can use anything as a weapon and close combat weapons drew less attention than guns.

Leo set Shinta in a chair across from K-three and went to get some cups from the cupboard. He started, when he saw the time on the microwave. “I didn’t realize it was so late.” It was nearly three in the afternoon. “I guess Mikey and the others will be headed back soon.”

Mira grinned as an idea struck her. “How about we make dinner? It would give Mom a break.”

Leo grimaced. “That’s very sweet, Mira-chan, but you know I’ve never developed a skill for cooking beyond the microwave.” Even when he was finding Shinta things to eat, he normally gravitated to the leftovers in the fridge.

“I could help.” K-three offered and Mira blinked at him in surprise.

“You know how to cook?”

He chuckled as he stood. “My, uh, mother used to make me help. I’m not much of a cook on my own, but I learned to follow direction pretty well.”

Mira chuckled as well. “In that case, I’m sure we can whip something up. I’ve watched Mom do it enough.” So, under the teen’s direction the two males helped her prepare dinner.

Upstairs, the customer handed over some bills to Cat. He was one of her regulars, an older man with a tattoo of an eagle clutching an anchor on his shoulder. He gestured behind them at Raph, who was disguised as a burly brown haired human. “Who’s the guy? Did you finally hire some help?”

Cat chuckled. “That’s my husband, Raphael.”

He blinked in surprise. “Husband? When did this happen?”

Cat chuckled a little more. “Eighteen years ago.”

“Wow, you’ve been off the market that long.” He shook his head, his eyes dancing with amusement. “Just think of all that wasted time I spent pursuing you too.”

Raph stopped what he was doing and stood behind them. Cat saw him and quickly diffused the situation. She punched the older man lightly in the shoulder and laughed. “Tim, you’re such a dirty old man. You better watch yourself or I’ll have to call Maryanne.”

Tim put up his hands in surrender, laughing. “Oh, no! Don’t do that. She’ll take away my bike keys again. The last time she hid them in my barbeque pit. It took me a week to find them.” He paused. “Oh, yeah, that reminds me. She said to give you this.” He reached into his pocket to pull out a wallet size photo. “It’s the grandkids – Roger, John, and Charlie.”

Cat examined the photo. “Gosh, how old is Roger now?”

The old man’s eyes sparkled. “Sixteen.”

She smiled. “They sure do grow up fast. I remember the last time you brought him in here, he was just a little thing. He was only about seven then, right?”

“Yeah, before you know it their out of diapers and begging for a cell phone.” Tim gave a grunt. “Well, I better head on. Don’t want Maryanne to come looking for me.”

“Drive safe, Tim.” Cat walked with him to the large garage door and hit the button to bring it down. She felt good. Today had been very productive with Raph helping out. And she’d felt extra safe with him nearby. She turned to find him standing just behind her.

“Are all your customers that friendly?”

She grinned at the possessive glint in his eyes. “No, tough guy. Tim has just been a customer for a really long time. He likes to tease me is all. Besides, he’s terrified of his wife.” She reached out to run her hand along the box like holo-projector and turn it off. She smiled as the human image faded away and the familiar visage of her love appeared. “That’s better.” She pulled it from his belt and frowned at it. “I’m not sure if I like this thing or not.”

He frowned. “Why not?”

“I know it lets you be up here and believe me I have loved every minute of it today. I just don’t like not being about to see you - the real you, not this stupid human image.”

He smiled and stroked her cheek. “Well, I think we’ll get used to it. It’s worth it, if I get to spend the day with you.”

“I liked you spending the day with me too.” She smiled and leaned up to kiss him.

He wrapped her tightly in his arms. “Good, ‘cause I plan on doing it a lot more now.”

&*&*&*&*&*&

The rest of the day passed rather uneventful, except for the harrowing tale Kala told when they got home. Even though Kaz had appeared to be perfectly fine by the time they got there, Donnie had insisted on giving him a quick exam. He’d let him loose after a few minutes, declaring him healthy but for the knot on the back of his head. The evening was far more relaxed without Eznic’s brooding presence there. Everyone laughed and chattered through dinner. Sarah was very pleased and impressed with the spread they’d made. It was rare that she got to eat warm food that wasn’t made by her own hand.

After the meal Raph and Mikey had started a small scuffle over the remote. Yoshi and Kaz had giggled as Raph had chased Mikey around the room. Everyone seemed to be in better spirits than they had been in a long time. It seemed that their guests had helped release some of the built up pressure in the home since Amaya’s death. Bringing life and hope back into the family. Even Leo couldn’t help but chuckle while watching his brothers roughhouse. Shinta clung to his leg with wide eyes and his mouth forming an oh. Even Sarah didn’t seem to be as tired. She giggled at them from her place in Donnie’s lap. The genius smirked as he used his cell to change the channel on the TV, avoiding the conflict altogether. Cat and Kala just shook their heads and went back to what they were talking about.

Mira laughed at her uncles and K-three smiled at the beautiful sound. “I take it this is normal, little flower?”

“Very.” She continued to laugh for a moment, then turned to him. “I’ve been wondering why do you call me little flower?”

He blushed. “You remind me of a flower that grows on our planet.” He took a small tablet from his pocket and pulled up a picture. “It’s a desert rose, one of the few flowers that still grow on Shellri-La.”

She gazed at the small flower on the screen. Its delicate petals were a dark pink and its stem was a deep green, nearly the same shade as her skin. She smiled. “It’s beautiful.”

He blushed and his buddies snickered. “K-three, you’re such a geek sometimes.” Zan teased.

Mira frowned a little. “What does the third K stand for?”

It was Chase’s turn to tease. He grinned. “Go ahead K-three tell her.”

K-three’s blush deepened. “Well, uh…”

“Keldor. His middle name is Keldor.” Zan burst into laughter. “Isn’t that just the dorkiest name, you’ve ever heard!”

Chase laughed as well. “Sorry, man, but it is.”

Mira scooted a little closer to K-three and set her hand on top of his. “I don’t think it’s dorky at all.”

K-three lifted an eye ridge at her. “Really?”

She nodded and grinned. “Really. It’s not as bad as let’s say…. Zan.”

For a split second the Turtleoid being called out didn’t get it and then he snorted as they all began to laugh. All in all, the evening went very well and soon the family was drifting off back to their rooms for the night. When they were alone again, Mira took K-three’s hand. “Come on, I want to show you something.” She whispered.

He grinned at her conspiratorial tone and allowed her to lead him to the elevator. She typed in the code to shut off the alarm and they slipped inside. Once they were being carried away by the car, K-three looked down at her. “Where are we going?”

She smiled and he nearly melted. A mischievous light flickered in her eyes. “I thought you might like to see this world the way I do.”

He frowned a little. He wasn’t so sure taking off on their own without letting anyone know was such a good idea. “What about the holos?”

“We won’t need them.” She led the way out as the doors closed behind them. They climbed up the ladder in the back to the rooftop. Mira paused to key the code into the security panel there and reactivate the system.

K-three watched her as she stood, her mask tails floating in the breeze and her tonfa tucked into her belt. She was breathtaking and he felt his body heat despite the crisp night air. He watched her close her eyes and take in a deep breath. His body quaked with the desire to reach for her.

She opened her eyes and smiled at him. “How about a race? It’s a good night for one.”

“A race?” He looked at her much smaller stature and thought that it might be a bit unfair to her with his long strides. “I don’t know.”

Her smile broadened. “Oh, come on. Don’t tell me my uncles and Dad are rubbing off on you already.”

He smirked. “No. I just don’t think it’d be fair to you.”

“Not fair to me….” She snorted and he laughed. She straightened herself to her whole five feet and one-inch height. “We’ll see how unfair it is when I win.”

He grinned taking the challenge. “And if I win, what do I get?”

Mira thought this over for a moment and stepped close to him. She caught his wrists as he started to reach for her and held them down as she leaned up to feather her lips across his. He let a soft groan leave him and tried to wrap her in his arms again. She stepped back just out of his reach with a wicked grin. “I’ll give you a proper prize, _if_ you win.”

He gave a small nod of agreement, afraid to speak and let her hear the incredible desire in his voice. His heart was pounding so loud in his ears that he had to concentrate to hear her instructions on where they were going. And then she was running, springing from one rooftop to the next. Something primal took over inside him and he growled. This was no longer a race but a chase. He sprang after her, her tantalizing scent floating to him on the wind. Adrenaline coursed through his body and he surged forward. They had nearly reached the water tower she’d pointed out as their finish line.

Mira felt her skin tingle, the sensation of being someone’s prey crawled up her spine. She didn’t dare a glance back; she could almost feel his breath on her neck. A tiny squeal left her as he caught her from behind. His arms wrapped around her protectively as they rolled across the rooftop to stop with his shell against the tower’s support. They were both panting and his skin felt like fire where it touched her own.

Slowly she opened her eyes to look up at him. His golden eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. “I win.” His voice was low and husky.

Her body reacted to his, shivering beneath his large bulk. His scent had shifted, getting thicker and heavier. She felt like her entire body was on fire. “I guess you should claim your prize then.” He didn’t hesitate as his mouth came down to cover hers with passion. Small hands clutched at his vest and she felt his hand slide down her shell to rest on her thigh. It didn’t move, just rested there. But it didn’t have to, the steady pressure there made her instincts surge to the surface. She fought down the desire to rock her hips into his. She shuddered and the slightest anxiety sprang into her heart.

He pulled back to look at her, his hand left her thigh to cup her face. “Shh…” The soft hum began in his chest again and she relaxed into him. His large fingers traced her cheek and jaw and along the curve of her slender neck. He would never hurt her, never scare her, never damage this pure flower beneath him. She deserved so much more. She deserved everything he could ever give her and more.

He rubbed his cheek against her head as her fingers traced the ridge of his plastron. Her eyes drifted to half-mast and a small smile played across her lips. She could feel his concern for her push aside the obvious arousal that was pulsing through him. She sighed. The world had lost is noise again, going suddenly silent in his arms. The full moon hung low, dousing them in its pale blue light. She would have loved to stay there forever, sheltered and warm. But that was not what fate would allow.

A woman’s scream echoed off the walls of the alley nearby. Mira’s eyes shot wide. The world swept back to her along with the woman’s fear. K-three frowned as she pushed her way out of his arms and stood. “What are you doing?”

She ran to the edge of the roof to look down. A man encroached upon a woman, his knife shimmered in the nearly nonexistent light. “My job.” She hopped onto the ledge, twirling her tonfa.

K-three was beside her in a matter of seconds. He scowled down at the scene beneath them. This is what they did? Jumped headlong into dangerous situations. Well, he wasn’t about to let his flower do that! But before he could protest, she’d descended the fire-escape. For an instant she seemed to disappear in the shadows. And then he spotted her almost to the ground. She’d moved so silently and swiftly he quite possibly would have missed her, had he not been looking for her and knew the exact shape of her small body.

“Here take it!” The woman held out her purse in the man’s direction.

He scoffed and continued forward, an evil glint in his eye. “Who said I wanted your purse?”

Mira had made it behind a set of trash cans on the alley floor. “Creep!”

The man turned towards the voice but one of the trash can lids flew right into his nose. He staggered back cursing. Gathering his senses, he charged in the direction of the female voice. “You want some of this too!”

But Mira had moved already. She was now positioned further up the alley behind a dumpster. “Trash like you shouldn’t be allowed to walk the streets!” She threw a can at his head and he spun around, not knowing where the blow had come from.

The man smirked into the darkness. “What’s the matter, sweetheart? Jealous?”

K-three’s fingers dug into the ledge, a low growl began reverberating inside the alley. _This human better watch his mouth!_ Below, the thug looked up towards the rooftop at the sound. He backed towards Mira’s position and she took advantage of K-three’s unintentional distraction. Her tonfa crashed into his back, head and knees in succession. The man simply let out a grunt as he crumbled unconscious to the ground.

Mira immediately jumped back into the shadows as the woman at the end of the alley peered into the darkness. “Thank you, whoever you are.”

“We girls have to stick together. Be careful going home, ma’am.”

K-three blinked. Mira’s voice had come from the fire-escape, but he hadn’t seen her move this time. He had to confess, she was good. The woman nodded and darted out of the alleyway. A moment later Mira was on the rooftop, looking as pleased as punch. In a flash he had her wrapped in his arms. He pressed her tightly to his chest. “Don’t ever do that to me again!”

She stepped back with a frown. “But this is what we train for. My family and I patrol all the time. Otherwise the scum would overrun this city. It’s our duty to protect the innocent.”

He saw the determination in her brown eyes and sighed. “At least tell me ahead time before you go jumping off buildings in the future.”

She smiled at that. Did that mean they had a future? Something beyond the next two days? “Okay.” Suddenly her expression changed and she glanced over her shoulder towards home.

He frowned. “What is it?”

Her frown was deeper. “I think I’m in big trouble.”


	13. In A Moment

As the elevator door opened, Mira cringed as two pair of brown eyes and one set of blue dug into them. Dozens of emotions swamped her, the two most notable was disappoint and anger. She opened her mouth to explain but didn’t get the opportunity as her father spoke.

Donnie glared past his daughter at the other turtle. “Go to your room, Mira.” He ground out through clenched teeth.

Mira’s eyes grew wide. “What! No!” Sarah moved to take her by the arm and pull her down the hall.

“And as for you-“ Donnie’s voice was level but it held a dangerous edge. K-three stood stoically, willing to take any punishment, if it spared his flower.

Mira broke away from her mother and grabbed his arm. “No! Wait, Daddy, it was my idea!”

The three adults turned to her with shock in their eyes. Leo was the first to get his voice back. “Mira, that was extremely reckless. We still have enemies in this city. You could have been followed. You could have been hurt or worse.” Although her uncle’s voice was low, she could tell he was really shouting at her.

“I made sure we weren’t.” She promised.

Donnie turned to grip her small shoulders. “Mira, what in the world possessed you to go topside without one of us? You put yourself at risk as well as the rest of us.”

“I was okay. I was with Kane.”

Donnie glanced at the male, reminded of his presence. “I thought we had an understanding. What were you thinking letting her go up there?”

Mira stepped away from her father and in front of K-three, her eyes flaring protectively. “Don’t blame him. I told you it was my idea!” K-three set his hands gently on her shoulders.

Donnie narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, but Sarah’s hand landed on his arm. “She’s right. He doesn’t understand our world and we can’t expect him to know all the dangers.”

Donnie’s gaze burrowed into K-three’s and the Turtleoid looked away shamefully. He’d known, but he’d let her cloud his judgement. He’d let the desire to spend a little more time alone with her outweigh his good sense. His guts twisted into a tight knot. He’d put her in danger. He’d even let her fight some filthy human scum all alone. He couldn’t allow this to happen again. Her life was far too precious. And so with more pain than he’d ever felt, he called to his friends. “Chase, Zan.”

The two had been standing just out of sight inside the short hall leading to the dojo. They both stepped out a bit sheepishly. Chase cleared his throat. “Yeah?”

“Pack up. We’re leaving.”

Mira spun on him. Her panic, fear and shock hit him like a punch to the stomach. “No!”

He caught her hands as she reached for him, shaking his head sadly. “I could never allow you to get hurt because of me.”

Tears welled in her brown eyes. “You- you can’t…”

He cupped her face, wiping away the tears that rolled down it. “I was always going to leave.” He confessed. “It’s what I have to do. It’s what my duty commands of me.” He took the small photo of him and his brother from his pocket and pressed it into her hand. Mira could tell he no more wanted to leave than the flowers wanted perpetual darkness. She opened her mouth to protest but he pressed a finger to her lips and shook his head. He couldn’t bear to hear her plead with him. It would be too much and he wouldn’t be able to force himself to leave.

Chase and Zan returned with the few items they’d brought from their ship. The four holo-bands dangled from Zan’s hand. K-three tore his eyes from Mira to look at his companion. “Leave those.” His gaze dropped back to the petite turtle shaking in his hands. “They’re a gift… to keep you safe.”

Zan passed the holos to Leo and frowned as he and Chase entered the elevator. Neither seemed very pleased with this sudden change in plans, but neither spoke against it either. Once their captain had decided on an action, they could rarely change his mind.

Mira sniffled and K-three lifted her chin to place a gentle kiss on her lips. “Goodbye, my flower.” He backed away from her into the elevator. His eyes never left hers as the door closed. And just like that he was gone.

She lifted a hand as if to grab his phantom after image and tried to speak. But what came out was a heart-wrenching sob. Sarah hurried forward to wrap her daughter’s quaking form in her arms, her own tears poured freely down her tan cheeks. Mira clutched at her, burying her face in her shoulder.

Donnie frowned at them. He could feel the echo of her pain through his spouse and it made his insides ache. He started to reach for her. “Mira, sweetheart…”

The teen spun around and glared at him, a mixture of pain and anger in her face. “You made him leave!” She balled her fists. “I hate you!” She turned and sprinted down the hall, slamming the door so hard it rattled the walls.

Donnie’s jaw dropped as he felt his heart being ripped in two. He glanced at his mate. For a split second he could feel her anger rise as well, but it vanished in a heartbeat. She stepped in front of him and brushed her fingers along his cheek. “She didn’t mean it, love. She’s just upset. I’ll go talk to her.”

He watched her go and wished that things could go back to when his daughter was small. When life was simple. When he could fix everything and she thought the world of him. When her tiny hugs and kisses were the most precious gifts he’d ever been given. He felt the sting of tears and he dropped his face into his hand.

Leo touched his shoulder. “We’re with you, bro. Whatever you want us to do. We’ll do.”

“Do?” Donnie spit out the bitter word. “What would you have me _do_ , Leo? Go after him, drag him physically back here and demand he love my daughter? No one forced him to leave. He chose it on his own. And if that is the type of man he really is, then I hope he never comes back.” He took a strangled breath. “She might be able to get over it this time. She might not get sick.”

“And if she does?” Leo asked cautiously.

“Then God help him when I get my hands on him.”

&*&*&*&*&*&

Sarah opened the door quietly and shut it softly behind her. Mira was sobbing into her pillow, her mask abandoned on her desk.  Sarah sat beside her and stroked her head. “I know it hurts, sweetie, but it will pass.”

Mira lifted her head. “I thought he loved me.” She shook her head. “No, I know he loves me.” She let out another sob. “But he left me. Why?” Her brown eyes pleaded for understanding from her mother, an understanding that completely eluded the teen.

Sarah sighed and scooted back to draw her child’s head into her lap. “I don’t know. But I suspect he was trying to take care of you somehow.” She continued to stoke her head and arms comfortingly. “Let me tell you a story. A long time ago there was a girl, much younger than you, that had found her one true love. But their meeting was brief and she was taken away from him and sent far away. For ten long years they were separated, growing and changing, but never forgetting the one they’d lost. Until one day they were reunited and what had been a gentle love as children turned into something so unbreakable it could not even be shattered by millions of miles of space or death itself.”

Mira wiped at her face with a frown. “So? What does that have to do with me?”

Sarah ignored the slight bitterness in her tone. “There is a saying. If you love someone and you let them go, and they return to you then it was true love all along. If he loves you, he will come back even if it takes years to do so.”

New tears slipped from the young turtle’s eyes. “Oh, Mom, I don’t know if I could wait years or even days. I feel so empty when he’s not with me.”

Sarah pulled her closer. “You can wait. Your father and I waited ten years.”

Mira processed this information. So the girl in the story had been her mother. How had she survived without her mate for so long? She frowned, realizing how much she must have suffered during those years. She thought of her father going through that same separation and her frown intensified. “Then why did he drive Kane away! Why did he make him leave!”

Sarah continued to stroke her arms, trying to soothe away the anger and confusion. “He didn’t, sweetie. He was worried and only trying to protect you. He never told him to go. You know that. He loves you so much. He’d do anything for you.” She kissed the top of her head where it rested in her lap as she felt more dampness on her nightgown. “There is one thing I need you to do for me. It’s very important.”

Mira choked on another sob, her shoulders trembling. “What?”

“I need you to tell me if you feel sick in any way.”

Mira sat up and raised an eye ridge at her. “Why?”

Sarah sighed and decided it was best to explain. Her daughter was very analytical like her father and the more information she had the better off she would be. “Do you remember many years ago, when your father was trapped in that other dimension?”

Mira nodded. “Yes, and that other turtle was here that looked like Dad but wasn’t.”

Sarah nodded. “Do you remember how sick I got?”

Mira nodded again. “You almost died.”

“it’s called separation sickness. Bonded Mazars and their mates cannot be separated for any extended periods of time or by any great distance. It makes us very ill and can eventually kill us.”

Mira frowned. “You mean if you and Dad are…. Why haven’t you told me this before?”

“Because you were still too young to understand the depth of the bond. We didn’t want to frighten you. And until recently we thought it impossible for you to ever bond like we did. The truth is, we’re still not sure you really can. But the way you described what happened to you that day on the trestle….”

“You think that maybe I have bonded with Kane?”

Sarah nodded, her eyes sad. “Yes, and with K-three leaving….” She paused as more tears began flowing from her daughter’s eyes. “You just need to tell us right away, if something doesn’t feel right. Okay?” Mira nodded and Sarah urged her to lay down. “Try to get some sleep. Maybe things will look better in the morning.”

Mira seriously doubted that as her mother left the room. She looked down at the crumpled photo in her hand. She just didn’t understand. If he loved her, and she knew he did, why had he left her? He could be flying off in his spaceship at this very moment and she might never see him again. Her vision blurred and she turned her head to let out a heartbreaking wail into her pillow. She was alone again. So very alone.

&*&*&*&*&*

K-three went through the launch list methodically one more time. Everything seemed to be in order. All their gear was stowed and the engines were warmed. His companions exchanged looks behind his back. There was an uneasy silence on the bridge. K-three ignored the silent conversation going on behind him and pressed the sequence to launch.

His movements were mechanical and he only glanced at his sensor screen once to be sure they weren’t on a collision course with an airborne vehicle before hitting the accelerator and shooting up through the clouds. It wasn’t long before they broke away from the blue planet and were soaring amongst the stars.

“You’re an ass!” Zan suddenly shouted, making K-three jump a little.

He didn’t bother to look at him, he knew the angry look he was receiving. “If you want to spend the next two days hanging out somewhere off planet, you can. Just drop me off and take the ship.”

“You know damn well that is not what I’m talking about!” Zan was on his feet just behind the larger turtle’s chair.

“It was time to go.” He responded flatly.

Zan spun the chair around and growled in his face. “I thought you were better than this!”

K-three’s face scrunched and anger flared in his golden eyes. “Watch yourself, Lieutenant.” Didn’t they understand this was hard enough?

“Why! Tell me why! You think you’re so important that the war can’t be won without you! Is that it!”

K-three shoved Zan away from him. “I can’t stay! No matter how much I want to!”

Zan frowned at him. Well, at least he’d gotten him talking. “Why? What is keeping you on Shellri-La? I hate to tell you this, but you haven’t got a home or money or even a commission any more. You don’t even have family!”

“I do have family.” K-three growled out.

Chase looked up from his console with sympathy in his eyes. “You haven’t checked the communications log yet, have you?”

K-three frowned at him. “Why? Has something happened?”

Chase shook his head. “Just check it.”

K-three turned back to his console and pulled up a list of communications. Most of them were from central telling them of attacks and defenses and the status of the capitol city. There was one from Prog saying they’d reached home without incident and he’d made sure the computer’s memory was cleared again. Then much further back was a personal wire. The sender was a hospital and it gave away what was likely inside.

He opened the file and felt his heart drop, his suspicions confirmed. His grandfather had died a few days ago of natural causes. He took a shuddering breath and pushed back from the console. “I’m going to take a nap. Wake me when we get there.” He left the room for the sleep quarters.

Zan threw his hands into the air in exasperation and glared at Chase. His buddy sighed. “I’m going. Just keep an eye on things.”

Zan grinned. “Sure, should I change our course?”

Chase shook his head sadly. “Don’t get your hopes up.” He turned and headed to the back of the ship where the cots were. K-three was settled on one, pulling off his boots. Chase folded his arms and watched him for a moment. “What are you doing, K-three?”

“Getting ready to take a nap. Shouldn’t you be at the controls?”

“Zan is watching them and don’t try to change the subject. Why are you here? Why aren’t you back there holding that beautiful girl in your arms?”

K-three let out a heavy sigh, his eyes downcast. “I could’ve gotten her hurt. I could never do that to her.”

Chase glared. “What the hell do you think you’re doing right now? You _are_ hurting her.”

“Maybe, but she’s safe.”

“Safe isn’t the same thing as happy.”

“I don’t want to argue with you about this. I have responsibilities on Shellri-La. I had to leave.”

Chase snorted. “Don’t give me that crap, K-three. You know Zan was right. You haven’t got one thing holding you there now that your gramps is gone. And as for me and Zan? Well we can get along just fine without you. We aren’t kids any more, we don’t need you to keep an eye on us.”

K-three finally lifted his eyes to his friend’s. Chase had been with him most of his life. They’d played together as young boys, they’d shared their dreams and fears, they’d weathered a lot of storms together, and they’d even survived the first attack together. They’d saved each other’s shells more times than he could count. He knew his friend was loyal to a fault. But in this case he wasn’t so sure he could accept his counsel.

He sighed. “Maybe you don’t, but it’s how things are and it’s how things will be. Now, I’d like to take a nap before we get there.”

Chase frowned and turned away from him. But he paused and spoke over his shoulder. “She loved you.”

K-three stared after him for a long moment and then at his hands on his knees. “I loved her too.”


	14. Towards Tomorrow

Donnie paced back and forth across his lab, work forgotten, training forgotten, everything forgotten. Worry and heartache ate at him. It had been three days since the Turtleoids had left. Mira had barely left her room in that time. Now and then he could still hear muffled sobs through her door and the wall of their bedroom. Sarah had assured him that as far as she could tell Mira wasn’t sick. She wasn’t growing weak or feverish, at least not yet. She was simply depressed. He had knocked on her a door a few times, but she’d told him to go away. And so, rather than cause her more pain, he’d left her alone. The girls had each tried their hand at coaxing her out, but each had returned empty handed with their own tears rolling down their cheeks.

He paused, listening to the sound of the punching bag in the distance. His hotheaded brother was likely wearing out the bag by now. Raph had been ticked to say the least to find out K-three had actually left. Leo had stayed away for the most part, trying to allow their smaller family unit to work out what was happening. But he could not hide his disappointment in the Turtleoid’s departure. Mikey too had been very disappointed and wanted to comfort his niece. But Mira had told him to go away as well. Apparently she wasn’t too happy with any males right now.

He began pacing again. He wasn’t used to feeling quite so helpless. He just wished there was something he could do to make her feel better. The sound of the elevator opening caught his attention and he moved out into the hall. It was still daylight outside and he wondered why Cat was coming downstairs.

He stopped cold, his heart jumping into his throat as he rounded the corner. There before him stood K-three. Behind him Cat was smiling as tears trickled down her face.

Donnie’s voice came out rougher than he meant when he spoke. “What are you doing here?”

K-three’s eyes held shame and regret. “Well, I…uh…” A green fist struck him in the jaw, making him stumble back.

Raph glared. “I told you if you hurt her, I was gonna hurt you!”

Leo and Mikey had joined them along with Sarah and Kala. The youngest brother jumped between them. “Wait, Raph. He came back.”

Leo frowned. “What took you so long?”

K-three rubbed his chin. “It took a few days to get my grandfather’s estate settled.”

Leo’s eyes softened. “Kerma died?”

K-three nodded and looked around the room. “Where….?”

Donnie jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. “Back there.”

The way he said it made K-three’s heart clench. “What’s wrong?”

Kala shook her head, her eyes misting. “She hasn’t left her room in three days and she’s barely ate.”

K-three frowned and started for the hall, but Donnie stepped into his path. He growled. “You left.” He left the unasked question hanging in the air. _Why should I let you see her now? Why should I trust you?_

K-three bowed his head in both a submissive and pleading gesture. “I won’t do it again, I swear. I’ll stay, if you’ll let me.”

Sarah stepped past the others to Donnie’s side. There was some silent communication between the couple. The Mazar looked half-dead from exhaustion. Her eyes were red and rimmed in dark circles, and she was paler than K-three remembered. At last she nodded and her mate frowned. He turned and walked down the hall to Mira’s door. K-three followed anxiously after him. Their brown and gold eyes locked as Donnie spoke. “You messed up, now you need to fix it. _If_ she still wants you, you can stay.”

K-three nodded, though his guts twisted with the idea that she might reject him. Donnie stepped away and the young man opened the door without bothering to knock. The room beyond was dark and her sweet scent filled it, making his blood rush. He walked quietly across the room to look down at her. She was sleeping but not peacefully. Her face was contorted and a grimace lined her lips. Her eyes were rimmed in the same dark circles as her mother’s and her deep green skin seemed paler as well.

A tear trickled down his cheek. Oh, how he’d hurt her. Not being able to control the urge to comfort her, he crawled onto the bed atop the covers and pulled her to him, starting the low hum in his chest. Though she didn’t open her eyes, her features relaxed. He caressed her shell and arms and cradled the back of her round head, nestling it beneath his chin. “I’m here.” He rumbled softly. “And I’m not going anywhere ever again.”

Donnie stepped away from the open door and back down the hall. Sarah smiled at him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Mikey looked down the hall towards the Mira’s room. “So, does this mean she didn’t really bond with him, since she never got sick?”

Sarah shook her head. “No, she did. But in a different way than we did. He is able to block out the world for her, give her peace and silence. For an empath that is a precious gift. Without him to give her focus, she’s lost and alone in a sea of emotions that aren’t her own.”

Donnie ran his fingers through her long brown locks. “And who knows, in time their bond might grow like ours did into something far stronger.”

A little while later Mira woke slowly, the world strangely quiet. She opened her eyes and stared at the vision beside her. For that’s what she thought it was - a vision, maybe some remnant of a dream. Because he couldn’t really be there, sleeping beside her. He was some figment of her imagination, conjured up from her tattered and exhausted mind. His arms around her felt real, but she had dreamed of those too. She reached out to touch his face, expecting her fingers to slip through his ghostly image as they had done before when her dreams encroached upon reality. She nearly jumped when her fingers touched his leathery flesh. And for a brief moment she wondered if perhaps she was going mad. Was her mind now forming a physical image of him, manufacturing the sensation of touching him, of feeling his warm breath on her palm.

But then his eyes opened and it was like the sun was shining inside her tiny bedroom. He caught her hand and kissed it. “Are you real?” She whispered, still afraid he was some phantom that might fade away.

“Yes.” He replied in the same whisper.

She was still unconvinced. Her imagination had played such cruel tricks on her before – but none quite so real. “Prove it.”

His expression grew serious at the challenge. Cupping the back of her head, kissing her fully and completely. Tears welled in her eyes. He smelt and tasted so real. Could her mind produce this? She relaxed into him. Even if it was a dream, she would rather stay here than to return to the world devoid of him. She could feel his love flow over her and it was the last piece. He was real! He was here in her arms by some miracle she couldn’t even fathom. The tears broke free and he drew away to wipe at them.

“Oh, my sweet flower. I don’t know how I will ever make this up to you. But I promise that I will try every single day for the rest of my life.”

&*&*&*&*&*&

**Epilogue**

“A glooming peace this morning with it brings; The sun for sorrow will not show his head. Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things; Some shall be pardoned, and some punished; For never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.” Donnie closed the book and set it aside.

Sarah shifted in his arms, curling a little more into his chest. “It could have ended that way I suppose. He could have hated me for what I was and Mira could have been hurt far worse.”

Donnie sighed, resting his cheek on the top of her head. “Maybe, but it’d be hard for anyone to hate you after just spending a few minutes with you.”

She smiled against his plastron. “No, I think we were just lucky that he has such a good heart.” She chuckled a little. “In a way he reminds of you.”

Donnie snorted at that. “I wouldn’t have left you.”

She shook her head just a little. “You might have, if you thought I was in danger because of you.”

He buried his nose in her hair, recalling the time they had spent apart so very long ago. Could he have walked away like K-three had done to ‘protect’ her? He growled possessively and pulled her tight against him. “No, I would have stayed. If you were in danger, I’d rather be right by your side.”

“I think he realized that too in the end. It just took him a lot longer than you.”

For a while they sat silently, allowing the warm glow of the fireplace to engulf them. It was the only light in the dark farmhouse, but it was the only one needed. They were alone. This was when they were most free to be themselves. There was no one knocking at their door, needing something. There was no laundry list of chores to do or children to watch.  Here they could speak in half sentences and be understood, and no one would look at the funny. They could go hours without a word but still communicating nonetheless. They could dote on one another without the fear of interruption or intrusion. Here they could be as quiet or as loud as they wished. Here it was silent, safe and warm.

Sarah wrapped her arms around her mate, letting out a deep breath. Donnie smiled, feeling her incredible love wash over him. Through the bond it was returned to her and reflected a hundred fold. He lifted her chin to place a kiss on her lips. “I have something for you.”

She opened her eyes and smiled at him. “Oh?”

He lifted an eye ridge at her. “You didn’t think I forgot our anniversary, did you?”

She laughed. “No, but I’m afraid with all the commotion, I may have.”

He smirked. Then turned slightly to pull his belt off the couch and open one of the pouches on it. The item sparkled as he brought it around and laid it in her hands. It was a heart-shaped gold locket. She opened it gently. On one side was a photo of the three of them and on the other side was an inscription. _Forever Yours, Forever Bound._

Tears blurred her vision and his hands came up to wrap around hers, unhooking the golden chain and slipping it around her neck. His breath was hot on her ear. “The past twenty years have been amazing and I’m sure the next twenty will be even more incredible as long as they’re with you.” He nuzzled her neck. “I love you so much.”

She turned fully to him, her eyes glistening in the firelight and her heart exposed completely to him through their bond. “I love you more.”


End file.
